Skip to main content

Full text of "Great in goodness : a memoir of George N. Briggs, Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, from 1844-1851"

See other formats 


NYPL  RESEARCH  LIBRARIES 


3  3433  08233994  0 


r 


! 


j 


' 


I 


rt^i&^^frcL 


'   rffsrfU// 


//     //ft 


'/f 


'M^Jr^.y^y^rsy 


\* 


GREAT  IN  GOODNESS; 


A    MEMOIR 


OF 


:* 


GEOEGE  1ST.   BEIGGS, 

GOVERNOR  OF  THE  COMMONWEALTH  OF  MASSACHUSETTS, 


FROM  1&«  TO  185L 


BY 


WILLIAM    C.    RICHARDS. 


"  Justum  et  tenacem  propositi  virum." 

"  Only  the  actions  of  the  just, 

Smell  sweet  and  blossom  in  the  dust." 


m\ih   ^UtfrinfioHS. 

l 


|         ,  I        1 


'  '  I  I 


BOSTOX: 

gould     j±  jsr'r>: '  3l>  i  ,jv  *&  o-'x,  3sr  , 

5  9     WASHINGTON      STREET. 

NEW    YORK:     SHELDON    AND    COMPANY, 

CINCINNATI :  GEO.  S.  BLANCHAKD  AND  CO. 

186G. 


THE  NEW  YORK 

PUBLIC  LIBRARY 

165569 

A3TOR,  LENOX  AND 
TlLDE.NFCt:.DAT(CN3 

1900, 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congivss,  in  the  year  1866,  by 

GOULD    AND    LINCOLN, 

[a  ilie  Clerk's  office  of  the  District  Court  for  the  District  of  Massachusetts 


'.•    . 


•  • 


.  •  • 

•      •  • 


Rockwell  tm  Bo llihs,  Printers, 


PREFACE. 


Q/^WjHERE  are  perhaps  not  a  few  lives,  in  the  great  annals 
of  our  age,  which  are  invested  at  their  close  with  suffi- 
cient interest  to  entitle  them  to  immediate  commemo- 
ration by  some  friendly  hand,  and  to  secure  for  the 
service  rendered  a  meed  of  approval  more  or  less  general  and 
cordial. 

It  is  of  rare  occurrence,  however,  that  a  life  which  has  ceased 
for  several  years  without  any  adequate  memorial,  will,  by  the 
force  of  its  inherent  excellence  and  by  the  charm  of  its  unfad- 
ing beauty,  not  only  justify  but  compel  a  tardy  portraiture. 

The  life  of  Governor  Briggs  is  of  this  exceptional  order. 
The  silent  lapse  of  five  years  has  served  not  to  cloud  it  with  the 
mists  of  forgetfulness,  but  rather  to  brighten  it  into  the  pure 
and  steady  radiance  of  a  meridian  fulness.  The  long  continued 
reticence  of  the  biographer  concerning  this  noble  life  has  proved 
to  be  less  an  injustice  done  to  that,  than  to  the  public  outside  of 
the  wide  sphere  which  it  filled. 

It  is   needless  to   recount  here    the   causes   of  this    delay, 
and  certainly  it  is  more   grateful  to   him,  from  whose  hands 
the  Memorial  at  length  proceeds,  to  express  his  deep  sense  of 
the    advantage  he  has  gained  for  the  adequate  fulfilment  of 
his  pleasing  duty,  from  the  necessity  he  was  under  of  content 

iii 


iv  PREFACE. 

plating  the  character  of  his  subject  at  a  period  when  wise  im- 
pressions had  ripened  into  convictions,  and  when  he  had  not  to 
forestall,  but  simply  to  follow  the  judgment  of  the  wisest  and 
best  concerning  him.  '  * 

In  tracing  his  history  through  an  extended  and  eventful  ca- 
reer,  as  the  poor  boy,  the  young  lawyer,  the  wise  counsellor, 
the  eminent  statesman,  the  upright  judge,  the  useful  and  con- 
sistent Christian,  it  becomes  more  and  more  evident  that  his 
was  a  remarkable  life,  and  his  name  one  which  "the  world 
will  not  willingly  let  die."  The  need  of  this  formal  biography 
to  preserve  it  from  oblivion  is  not  half  so  apparent ;  and  it  is 
given  to  the  public  with  as  much  of  hesitation  as  of  hope  : 
with  hesitation,  because  of  the  manifold  imperfections  of  its 
doings ;  and  with  hope,  that  these  will  be  lost  sight  of  in  the 
surpassing  interest  of  its  theme. 

It  could  not  have  been  done,  without  more  and  indeed  fatal 
blemishes,  had  not  filial  love  and  generous  friendship  ministered 
largely  to  the  work  of  its  preparation.  The  biographer  should 
justly  disclaim  having  done  more  than  to  carefully  edit  the  co- 
pious materials  supplied  to  his  hand. 

He  commits  the  book,  which  is  the  record  of  one  emphatically 
"  Great  in  Goodness,'"  to  the  public,  and  especially  to  the  Chris- 
tian community,  with  the  confidence  that  it  contains  for  all  a 
beautiful  example  of  honorable  achievement  and  incorruptible 
virtue  —  an  example  too  shining  to  be  overlooked. 

Pittsfield,  August  30,  18G6. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

HIS  BIRTH  AND  PARENTAGE  — CHARACTER  OF  HIS  FATHER  — TRIBUTES 
FROM  HIS  OWN  HAND  — HIS  FILIAL  LOVE  —  CHILDHOOD  — EARLY  CHANGE 
OF  HOME  —  MATERNAL  PRIDE  — INFLUENCES  OF  HIS  HOME  UPON  HIS 
CHARACTER 15 


CHAPTER   II. 

ANOTHER  CHANGE  OF  HOME— EARLY  RELIGIOUS  TRAINING  — EXPERIENCE 
OF  RELIGION  —  RELIGIOUS  EARNESTNESS  —  BOYISH  ELOQUENCE  —  RE- 
MARKABLE SCENES  —  AN  OLD  BALLAD — PRAYER  EXTRAORDINARY  — 
APPRENTICESHIP  TO  A  QUAKER  HATTER  —  ANECDOTES — AT  SCHOOL  — 
INCIDENT  OF  LATER  LIFE  —  LETTER  TO  THE  CHURCH  HE  JOINED  IN  HIS 
YOUTH 2G 


CHAPTER    III. 

SEVENTEEN  —  BEGINS  THE  STUDY  OF  LAW  —  COURAGE  —  HIS  ELDEST  BROTH- 
ER—HIS  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIM  — REMOVAL  TO  LANESBORO'  — HAB- 
1*  5 


• 


r  0  X  T  E  N  T  S . 

ITS  OF  STUDY  — MORE  LETTERS  TO  HIS  BROTHER— HIS  BROTHER'S  DEATH 
—  REVIVAL  IX  LANESBORO'  —  A  THEOLOGICAL  DISCUSSION  —  PLEASANT 
FRIENDSHIPS 39 


CHAPTER    IV. 

COMMON-PLACE  TRUTHS  VIVIFIED  —  A  STRIKING  CAREER  — INFLUENCE  OF 
EARLY  FRIENDS  —  HENRY  SHAW — LETTER  TO  MRS.  SHAW — DEATH  OF 
HIS  MOTHER  —  LETTERS  FROM  MR.  SHAW 50 


CHAPTER   V. 

ADMITTED  TO  THE  BAR  —  HIS  MARRIAGE  — GLIMPSES  OF  WEDDED  LIFE  — 
STRUGGLE  WITH  POVERTY  — SETTLES  IN  HIS  NATIVE  VILLAGE  —  TOO 
POOR  FOR  OFFICE  —  A  PEACE-MAKING  LAWYER  —  HIS  HOSPITALITY  AND 
GENEROSITY  —  SABBATH  BOUNTY  —  REPUTATION  AT  THE  BAR  —  TRIBUTE 
OF  AN  ASSOCIATE      .  63 


CHAPTER    VI 


HIS   CHARACTER   AND   CAREER   AT  THE    BAR  — SKETCH    BY    HON.    INCREASE 
SUMNER  —  TRIBUTE   FROM   DR.  TYLER 72 


CHAPTER    VII. 

ELECTED  TO  CONGRESS  — HIS  CONGRESSIONAL  DISTRICT  AND  CONSTITUENTS 
—  ANTICIPATIONS  AND  AMBITIONS  — JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  —  LET- 
TER, en  route  —  correspondence  with  his  family  ...       SO 


CONTEXTS.  t 

■  CHAPTER    VIII. 

IS  THE  "HOUSE"  —  PARLIAMENTARY  KNOWLEDGE  —  HIS  AFFABILITY  AND 
POPULARITY — INDUSTRY  —  HIS  POSITION  AS  A  SPEAKER  —  AN  EFFICIENT 
SPEECH  —  SPEECH  ON  THE  APPORTIONMENT  BILL  — FIRST  IMPRESSIONS 
OF  HENRY    3LAY  —  HIS   DENOMINATIONAL  POSITION  AND  FEELINGS    .      91 


CHAPTER    IX. 

DEATH  OF  HIS  YOUNGEST  CHILD  —  LETTERS  OF  CONDOLENCE  —  LETTER  TO 
HIS  FAMILY  PHYSICIAN  — SKETCHES  OF  PROMINENT  CONGRESSMEN —  A 
FRAGMENT  OF  HISTORY-- LETTERS  — TROUTING  —  LETTER-SKETCH  OF 
HARRIET  LIVERMORE  —  ANTICIPATIONS  OF  CHOLERA  .    .    .    .100 


CHAPTER    X. 

AT  HOME  — SAD  MEMORIES —  REMINISCENCES  OF  THE  CHOLERA  — LETTER 
FROM  RUFUS  CHOATE  —  NEW  YEAR'S  LETTER  FROM  WASHINGTON  —  EX- 
TRACT FROM  SPEECH  ON  IMPORT  DUTIES — LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER- 
DOMESTIC  FABRICS  — A  HOME-MADE  SUIT  OF  BROADCLOTH —LETTERS — 
FUNERAL  OF  WILLIAM  WIRT  — TRIBUTE  TO  REV.  W.  R.  STOCKTON      .        112 


CHAPTER    XI. 

CHARACTER  OF  HIS  LIFE  IN  WASHINGTON  — SOCIAL  NATURE  — HOME  IN- 
FLUENCES—A SYMPATHIZING  COLLEAGUE  — LETTERS  TO  HIS  WIFE — 
LAFAYETTE  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  —  LETTERS  TO  HIS  WIFE  — AT 
HOME I'26 


*  COXTEXTS. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

TWENTY-FOURTH  CONGRESS  — HIS  ESTIMATE  OF  POPULAR    FAVOR—  \    I  ON- 
TRAST    OF    PREACHERS  — ROBERT    HALL— OPINION    OF    HENRY    CLAY—  A 

CONSERVATIVE  LETTER  — LETTER  FROM  ELDER  LE»AND  —  LETTERS  TO 
HIS  WIFE  — WASHINGTON  MANNERS  — SABBATH  SESSION  OF  CONGRESS  — 
LETTER  TO  HIS   DAUGHTER  — FATHER  TAYLOR 136 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

THE  ARKANSAS  QUESTION  IN  CONGRESS  — MR.  BOULDIN'S  CHALLENGE  — 
JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS'S  AMENDMENT  TO  THE  BILL  — MR.  BRIGGS'S 
SPEECH  — HIS  RETICENCE  CONCERNING  HIMSELF  — A  LONG  DAY'S  SES- 
SION—INDECOROUS LEGISLATION  — LETTER  TO  HIS  NEPHEW  — HIS  DILI- 
GENCE IN  THE  HOUSE  — AN  AMUSING  EXCERPT  — THE  DUEL  OF  CILLEY 
AND  GRAVES  — A  LETTER  CONCERNING  IT  —  HOME-LONGINGS  — A  TRIB- 
UTE —  EXCURSION  TO  MOUNT  VERNON  —  A  PREACHER'S  THEOLOGY 
QUESTIONED 151 

CHAPTER    XIV. 

DECLINES  A  RE-NOMINATION  FOR  CONGRESS  —  EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  TO 
THE  ELECTORS  —  ILLNESS  —  HIS  DAUGHTER'S  MEMORIAL  OF  IT  — COM- 
PLETES HIS  FOURTH  TERM  IN  CONGRESS  —  HIS  RE-ELECTION  —  HIS  HOME 
IN  WASHINGTON  —  YANKEE  BOARDERS  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  WIFE  — ADHER- 
ENCE TO  PRINCIPLE  — MORE  OF  HENRY  CLAY  —  OBEYS  THE  POPULAR 
VOICE  — FORTY-FOUR  YEARS  OLD  —  A  THUNDER-STORM  —  LFTTER  FROM 
HENRY  SHAW  ON  HENRY  CLAY'S  DEFEAT  — TRIBUTE  TO  JOHN  LELAND,  104 

CHAPTER    XV. 

TWENTY-SEVENTH     CONGRESS  — MR.    BRIGGS    ELECTED  CHAIRMAN   OF    THE 
COMMITTEE  OF   THE  POST   OFFICE  AND  POST  ROADS  —  TOSTAL  REFORM  — 


CONTENTS.  9 

LETTER  TO  GEN.  SCOTT  — REMINISCENCES  OF  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS  — 
LETTER  FROM  HIM  —  FAMILY  REMOVAL  TO  PITTSFIELD  —  ENFEEBLED 
HEALTH  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  NEPHEW  —  LETTER  FROM  HENRY  SHAW  — 
FRIENDS  UNTO     DEATH 176 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

MR.  BRIGGS  NOMINATED  FOR  THE  OFFICE  OF  GOVERNOR  OF  MASSACHU- 
SETTS—  HIS  ELECTION  — POPULAR  REJOICING  —  HIS  FITNESS  FOR  THE 
POST  —  THE  NEW  GOVERNOR  IN  BOSTON  —  HIS  HOME  AND  HABITS  THERE 
—  WHY  HE  WORE  NO  COLLARS  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  WIFE  —  A  LETTER  CON- 
CERNING POLITICS —  POLITICAL  MORALITY  — THE  BERKSHIRE  FESTIVAL, 
1844  —  GOV.  BRIGGS  PRESIDES  —  A  CANE  FROM  MOUNT  PARNASSUS —  LET- 
TER TO  HIS  WIFE  —  LETTER  TO  DR.  TYLER  —  LETTERS  TO  HIS  NEPHEW,     185 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

HIS  DAUGHTER'S  MARRIAGE  — HIS  SON-IN-LAW— ARDENT  FRIENDSHIP  — A 
WIFE'S  ''IN  MEMORIAM"  — LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  IN  HER  NEW 
HOME  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  SON  —  POOR  DOG  TRAY  —  A  SHORT  AND  SIMPLE 
ANNAL  — TEACHERS'  INSTITUTE  — POLITICAL  CONFLICT  — HIS  RE-ELEC- 
TION—  A  MECHANIC'S  GIFT  —  HIS  LETTER  OF  ACCEPTANCE — A  TOAST 
SPEECH  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER — NOTE  FROM  AMOS  LAWRENCE  — 
REMINISCENCE  OF  A  VETERAN  —  AN  ALBUM  LETTER — HIS  SON-IN-LAW 
INJURED  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  200 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

HIS  EDUCATIONAL  RELATIONS  — A  CATHOLIC  MIND  — SELF-ALLUSION  — CON- 
NECTION WITH  WILLIAMS  COLLEGE  — TRIBUTE  FROM  PRESIDENT  HUM- 
PHREY—EDWARD EVERETT'S  INAUGURATION  AS  PRESIDENT  OF  HARVARD 
—  GOV.  BRIGGS'S  ADDRESS  .  - 21G 


10  CONTEXTS. 

CHAPTER   XIX. 

A  YEAR  IN  A  LETTER  —  A  PRESENTIMENT  —  FIRST  OF  APRIL— EXTRA  OF- 
FICIAL LABORS  — LETTER  TO  ZACHART  TAYLOR  —  HOMELESS  —  HIS  NEW 
ABODE  —  A  RURAL  LIFE  —  A  DAUGHTER'S    PORTRAITURE      ...  228 

CHAPTER    XX. 

THE  WEBSTER  MURDER  CASE  —  THE  RELATION  OF  GOVERNOR  BRIGGS  TO  IT 
—  HIS  DIFFICULT  POSITION  —  HIS  FIRMNESS  —  HISTORY  OF  THE  CASE  B\ 
ATTORNEY-GENERAL    CLIFFORD 236 

CHAPTER    XXI. 

CLOSE  OF  HIS  GUBERNATORIAL  LIFE  —  HIS  ADDRESS  DECLINING  A  RE- 
NOMINATION —  ANNIVERSARY  ORATION  AT  CONCORD,  MASS.  —  A  CANDI- 
DATE IN  SPITE  OF  HIMSELF  —  DEFEATED  IN  THE  LEGISLATURE— LETTERS 
TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  —  HIS  RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE  — HIS  OWN  REVIEW 
OF  HIS  PUBLIC  LIFE  — TRIBUTE  FROM    ANOTHER 251 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

THREE  YEARS  AT  HOME  — RESUMES  HIS  PROFESSION  —  A  TRIAD  OF  LET- 
TERS—  THE  ELEPHANT  SUIT  — A  TEDIOUS  CASE  —  ITS  FINAL  SETTLEMENT 
—  LETTERS  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  — A  REMARKABLE  DREAM  — LETTER  TO 
ABBOTT    LAWRENCE 2G5 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 

HE    IS    APPOINTED    JUDGE    OF  THE   COURT   OF   COMMON  PLEAS  — DEATH   OF 
HIS  MOTHER-IN-LAW  —  SEVERE  ILLNESS— HIS   DAUGHTER'S  ACCOUNT  OF 


CONTENTS.  11 

IT  —  A  SPRING  LETTER  —  A  SUMMER  LETTER  —  A  "WTNTBB  LETTER  TO  HIS 
SOX  IX  CUBA  — HIS  DAUGHTER-IN-LAW  RETURNS  AXD  FIXDS  NEW  LIFE 
—  A  LETTER  OF  REJOICIXG  FOR  HER  COXVERSIOX  AXD  BAPTISM  — TRIB- 
UTE  TO  HIS  JUDICIAL  CAREER 277 

CHAPTEE  XXIV. 

FIVE  YEARS  OX  THE  BEXCH  —  CHANGE  OF  THE  JUDICIARY  —  HIS  OFFICE  VA- 
CATED—  RETIREMENT  FROM  PUBLIC  SERVICE— MORAL  BEAUTY  OF  HIS 
PRIVATE  LIFE— HIS  CHRISTIAN  AXD  PHILAXTHROPIC  CHARACTER— HIS 
TEMPERANCE  EFFORTS  — THE  TEMPEEAXCE  REFORM  —  HIS  EFFORTS  IX 
THE  CAUSE  —  FLESHIXG  HIS  SWORD  FOR  THE  FIRST —  TOBACCO  AXD 
SNUFF  RENOUNCED  —  A  RETROSPECTIVE  GLAXCE  IXTO  HIS  CONGRESSION- 
AL  LIFE  —  A  MELANCHOLY  INCIDENT —  ANOTHER  — THE  TOTAL  ABSTI- 
XENCE  STAXDAED  SET  UP  — ANECDOTE  OF  ELDER  LELAND — NATION- 
AL TEMPERANCE  CONVENTION  AT  SARATOGA  —  HIS  EFFECTIVE  ARGU- 
MENTS          290 

CHAPTER    XXV. 

THE  WASHINGTONIAN  MOVEMENT— ITS  FORCE  AT  THE  CAPITAL  — HOX. 
THOMAS     F.     MARSHALL'S     PLEDGE  — LETTER     TO     MR.    BRIGGS  — A    NEW 

ERA  IX  TEMPERAXCE  — TRIBUTE  FROM  DR.  MARSH  — NOTE  FROM  MR. 
MARSHALL  — A  GOLD  MEDAL  — TEMPERANCE  AMONG  THE  COLORED  PEO- 
PLE—A TOUCHING  LETTER  FROM  A  COLORED  MAN  — GOVERNOR  BRIGGS'S 
REPLY  — ANECDOTES— THE  MYSTERIOUS  WOMAN  —  HIS  TEMPERANCE 
"  BRIEF  "  —  PRESIDENT     OF     THE     AMERICAN     TEMPERANCE     UNION     IN 

I860 303 

CHAPTER    XXVI. 

HIS  HOME  AND  INNER  LIFE  —  LOVE  FOR  DOMESTIC  ANIMALS  — HIS  SIMPLE 
TASTES  AND  SURROUNDINGS  —  HIS  LIBRARY  —  READING  HABITS— STUDY 
OF  THE  BIBLE  — HIS  RELIGIOUS  NATURE— A  FILIAL  TRIBUTE  —  POWER 
OF    HIS   FIRESIDE   PRAYERS  — HIS  HUMILITY  — A  FRIEND'S    TESTIMONY  — 


1-  CC/.Y7V.  :.  TS. 

TIBUTBS  AND  ANECDOTES— HIS  COURTESY  ILLUSTRATED  —  EXAMPLES  OF 
HIS  KINDNESS  — A  SILENT  BENEFACTOR— HIS  BOUNTIES  TO  THE  POOR- 
BROTHERLY  KINDNESS  — POWER  OF  REPARTEE— WITTY  EXCUSE  FOE  NOT 

DANCING  —  PEACE-MAKING  —  PAT'S  OPINION  OF  HIM  —  A  PRACTICAL  JOKE 
WITH  A  JUG  — A  MISTAKE  OF  IDENTITY  —FAMILY  REMINISCENCES  .     .     314 

CHAPTER    XXVII. 

ONE  OF  HIS  BENEFICIARIES  — A  LETTER  LAID  TIP  AS  A  JEWEL— JANE  HAR- 
RISON'S STORY"  AS  TOLD  BY'  A  FRIEND  — HIS  LETTER  UPON  HER  DEATH 
—  HIS  DAUGHTER'S  POSTSCRIPT  —  ANECDOTES  OF  HIS  KINDNESS  — 
REMINISCENCES  BY  "  GODFREY  GREY'LOCK  "  —  VISITS  TO  A  BLIND 
"BROTHER" 331 

CHAPTER    XXVIII. 

HIS  RELIGIOUS  LITE  —  A  CHRISTIAN  ENTIRELY' —  HARMONY"  OF  HIS  FAITH 
AND  WORKS  —  HIS  CATHOLIC  SPIRIT  —  RELIGIOUS  HABITS — HIS  ESTIMA- 
TION OF  HIS  PASTORS  — THEIR  ESTIMATION  OF  HIM — TRIBUTE  FROM  REV. 
J.  V.  AMBLER  —  TRIBUTE  FROM  REV.  L.  PORTER,  D.  D.  —  ANECDOTE  OF  HIS 
CHRISTIAN  SY'MPATHY' 343 

CHAPTER    XXIX. 

GOVERNOR  BRIGGS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY*  WORK—  HIS  ENTIRE  SYMPATHY 
WITH  IT  — THE  FIRST  LAY'  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  A.  B.  M.  UNION  —  FITNESS 
FOR  THE  OFFICE  — TAKING  THE  CHAIR  IN  1848— LETTER  FROM  DR. 
WAYLAND  —  THE  BUFFALO  ANNIVERSARY  IN  ISoO— PRESIDENT'S  OPENING 
ADDRESS  — HIS  FAREWELL  CHARGE  TO  DEPARTING  MISSIONARIES— A 
THRILLING  QUESTION  —  ANECDOTES  —  A  REMINISCENCE  BY  DR.  TODD  — 
HIS  FAITHFUL  SERVICES  — THE  "UNION"  AT  BROOKLYN  IN  1861— EX- 
CITEMENT ON  NATIONAL  QUESTIONS  —  HIS  OPENING  SPEECH  — HIS  SPIRIT 
AND  ITS  EFFECT  — THE  NEXT  MEETING  AND  THE  VACANT  CHAIR  — 
TRIBUTES ^3 


CONTEXTS.  13 

CHAPTER    XXX. 

THE  GLOOM  OF  REBELLION  —  GOVERNOR  BRIGGS  UNDER  ITS  SHADOW  —  DI- 
VINE CONSOLATION —THE  SEVENTY-SEVENTH  PSALM  —  ASSUMED  CHEER- 
FULNESS—  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  — LETTER  TO  A  SOUTHERNER  —  HIS 
SIXTY-FIFTH  BIRTHDAY  —  HIS  DAUGHTER'S  FURTHER  MEMORIALS — HIS 
SON  TAKES  THE  FIELD  —  THE  GOLD  LOCKET  —  SORROW  AT  HOME  —  INFLU- 
ENCE ON  GOVERNOR  BKIGGS —  HEALTHFUL  REACTION  ...  370 

CHAPTER    XXXI. 

LETTER  FROM  HIS  SON  ON  BOARD  THE  CONSTITUTION  —  HIS  REPLY  — LETTER 
TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  — ANECDOTE  OF  CROMWELL'S  AMBASSADOR  —  HIS 
DAUGHTER'S  MEMORIALS — LETTERS  TO  HIS  SON  —  MORE  REMINISCENCES 

—  LETTERS  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  —  HIS  THOUGHTS  AT  HIS  SON'S  DEPARTURE 

—  LETTERS  —  WILLIAMS  COLLEGE  COMMENCEMENT  —  HIS  LAST  LETTER  — 
THE  END  APPROACHING  —  A  SPEECH  TO  THE  "  ALLEN  GUARD"  —  ADDRESS 
OF  WELCOME  TO  HON.  JOSEPH  HOLT— INTERESTING  COINCIDENCE— TRIB- 
UTE OF  A  FRIEND 3Sl 

CHAPTER    XXXII. 

A  MORNING  OF  HOPE  — WORSHIP  —  WALK  TO  THE  VILLAGE  —  EXHILARA- 
TION OF  FEELING  — A  PURPOSED  ACT  OF  KINDNESS— ITS  MELANCHOLY 
ISSUE  —  HIS  DEATH-STROKE  —  SURGICAL  AID  — HIS  SUFFERINGS  — SCENES 
AND  INCIDENTS  — A  DREADFUL  NIGHT  —  HOPE  AND  NO  HOPE  —  THE  VALUE 
OF  HOPE  — ARRIVAL  OF  HIS  DAUGHTER  — HIS  FAITHFUL  NURSE  —  HIS 
DAUGHTER'S  MEMORIALS  OF  HIS  LAST  DAYS  —  HEAVENLY-MINDEDNESS — 
PATIENCE  — PREPARATION  — HIS   DEATH 307 

CHAPTER    XXXIII. 

SAD  TIDINGS  ON  THE  WING  —  ECHOES  FROM  THE  PRESS  — SORROW  THROUGH- 
OUT    BERKSHIRE— THE     DEATH-CHAMBER  —  FUNERAL     RITES     AT     THE 
2 


14  CONTEXTS. 

HOUSE  — ASLEEP  IN  JESUS — PROCESSION  TO  THE  CIIUECII  — DISTIN- 
GUISHED MOURNERS  —  FUNERAL  HYMNS  — THE  SCENE  DESCRIBED  —  DR. 
PORTER'S  TEXT  —  VIEWING  THE  FACE  OF  THE  DEAD  — A  MOURNER  IN 
RAGS  — GOING  TO  THE  GRAVE  —  PUBLIC  MEETINGS  AND  TESTIMONIALS 
—  CONCLUSION 412 


APPENDIX  I. 

THE  BERKSHIRE  JUBILEE 423 

APPENDIX   II. 

FUNERAL  SERMON 435 

APPENDIX   III. 

PUBLIC  MEETING  AT  PITTSFIELD 442 

PUBLIC  MEETING  AT  LANESBORO' 445 

ACTION  OF  THE  BERKSHIRE   BAR 447 


JIUtstra;tt0tTS. 

I.  likeness  OF  gov.  briggs  (Frontispiece). 

II.  BUST  OF  THE  GOVERNOR 14 

III.  HOUSE  WHERE  HE  WAS  BORN 17 

IV.  COLLEGE  FROM   WHICH   HE   GRADUATED 35 

V.  HOMESTEAD   AT   PITTSFIELD 2.°,f» 

VI.  MONUMENT  AT   PITTSFIELD 421 

yj      VII.  TRUNK,  WITH  ITS  LABEL ijfe 


MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS.. 


CHAPTER    I. 

HIS  BIRTH  AND  PARENTAGE — CHARACTER  .  OF  HIS  FATHER  —  TRIBUTES 
FROM  HIS  OWN  HAND— HIS  FILIAL  LOVE  —  CHILDHOOD  —  EARLY  CHANGE 
OF  HOME  — MATERNAL  PRIDE  — INFLUENCES  OF  HIS  HOME  UPON  HIS 
CHARACTER. 

George  Nixon  Briggs  was  born  at  South  Adams,  among 
the  hills  of  Berkshire,  Mass.,  on  the  twelfth  clay  of  April, 
1796. 

He  was  the  last  but  one  of  twelve  children,  ten  of  whom 
grew  up  under  the  healthful  influences  of  his  father's  hum- 
ble but  cheerful  home. 

Both  his  parents  were  born  in  Rhode  Island — his  father, 
Allen  Briggs,  in  Cranston,  April  27th,  1756.  and  his  mother, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Nancy  Brown,  in  Cumberland, 
Jan.  11th,  1762.  His  mother  was  of  Huguenot  descent; 
and  if  we  should  seek  his  ancestors,  we  might  find  them 
among  the  Pilgrims  who  sought  these  shores  in  the  ship 
w  Fortune." 

His  father  was  a  blacksmith  bv  trade,  and  mis:ht  have 
sat  for  not  a  few  features  of  the  picture  drawn  by  Longfel- 
low, in  his  well-known  poem,  "The  Village  Blacksmith  :" 

•  •  •  •  • 

"The  smith  a  mighty  man  is  he, 
"With  large  and  sinewy  hands  ; 
And  the  muscles  of  his  brawny  arms 
Are  strong  as  iron  bands. 

15 


16  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BlilGGS. 


"  His  brow  is  wet  with  honest  sweat, 
He  earns  whate'er  he  can ; 
•  And  looks  the  whole  world  in  the  face, 

For  he  owes  not  any  man." 

His  parents  were  of  a  simple  but  noble  t}'pe  of  charac- 
ter, which  was  subsequently  illustrated  in  a  beautiful  out- 
growth in  the  life  and  work  of  their  son.  The}T  inherited 
more  of  the  sterling  than  of  the  simply  stern  characteristics 
of  their  Pilgrim  progenitors.  Their  industry  and  frugality 
sufficed  to  exalt  them,  not  indeed  out  of  the  estate  of  the 
poor,  but,  certainly,  in  it,  to  a  position  of  social  respecta- 
bility, which  their  contentment  and  piety  combined  trans- 
figured, for  themselves  at  least,  into  true  domestic  hap- 
piness. 

To  a  clear  and  vigorous  judgment,  his  father  added  a 
degree  of  intelligence  which  gave  his  opinions  force  among 
his  neighbors,  of  whom  he  was  ever  hisfhlv  esteemed. 

The  remembrance  of  his  parents  was  always  dear  and 
fresh  in  the  heart  of  the  son.  His  tributes  to  their  excel- 
lence were  frequent  and  fervent ;  and  never,  throughout  his 
varied  career  did  he  cease  to  acknowledge,  with  filial  grat- 
itude and  pride,  his  immeasurable  obligations  to  the  fidelity 
and  force  alike  of  their  parental  influence  over  him. 

Long  after  they  were  gathered  to  the  dead,  and  when 
his  own  life-labor  was  fast  approaching  maturity,  he  traced, 
in  a  letter  to  one  of  his  children,  a  portraiture  of  his 
father,  so  beautiful  in  its  delineations,  so  touching  in  its 
filial  tenderness,  that  it  not  only  deserves,  on  these  ac- 
counts, a  place  in  these  memorials,  but  depicting,  more  fitly 
than  any  language  of  the  biographer  could  possibly  do,  the 
human  sources  of  that  sturdy  yet  gentle  virtue  which  dis- 


THE    HOUSE   WHKKE   HE  WAS   BOllN. 


THE  NEW  YOR* 

PUBLIC  LIBRARY, 

ASTOK,  ULNSX  AND 
TILOEN   FOUNDATION^. 


C HA  FA  C  TEH  0  F  HIS  FA  TUFF.  1 9 

tinguished  his  life,  and  constituted  indeed  the  great  motive- 
force  of  his  admirable  character,  could  not  be  omitted  here 
without  injustice.  The  letter  was  addressed  to  his  only 
daughter,  then  residing  with  her  husband,  at  Lawrence, 
Mass.  It  bears  the  date  of  a  day  which,  as  the  reader  will 
discover,  was  of  no  small  interest  in  the  family  :  — 

Pittsfteld,  27th  April,  1851. 
My  dear  Child  : 

I  suppose  you  were  disappointed  in  not  seeing  me  last  night. 
Right  glad  should  I  have  been,  if  I  could  consistently  have  been 
with  you  at  Lawrence  to-day,  but  it  was  not  so ;  and  the  longer  I 
live  the  better  I  learn,  I  hope,  to  be  content  with  what  it  seems  to 
be  the  will  of  Providence  I  should  meet,  whether  it  is  the  thing 
most  agreeable  to  my  wishes  or  not. 

The  day  has  been  one  of  much  interest  to  me.  It  is  not  only 
your  birthday,  but  it  is  the  birthday  of  my  own  father  and  of  our 
little  one  here  at  home.1  Ninety-five  years  ago  to-day  your  Grand- 
father Briggs  was  born  at  Cranston,  in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island. 
He  reached  his  threescore  years  and  ten,  and  two  days  afterwards 
went  the  way  of  all  the  earth,  to  "  that  country  from  whose  bourne 
no  traveller  returns."  His  mother  was  early  left  a  widow,  with 
four  young  sons,  of  whom  he  was  the  third.  Their  names  were 
Oliver,  Benjamin,  Allen,  and  Elisha.  He  told  me  once,  that  when 
a  boy  it  was  decided  he  should  go  from  home,  to  learn  the  cooper's 
trade.  When  he  left,  his  mother  went  some  part  of  the  way  with 
him ;  and  when  about  to  separate,  they  sat  down  on  a  rock  by  the 
wayside,  where  she  gave  him  a  mother's  counsel,  wept  over  him  a 
widowed  mother's  tears,  and  then  returned  to  her  lonely  home, 
while  he  passed  on  to  his  new  home. 

But  it  seems  he  did  not  stay  long  with  the  cooper,  for  he  learned 
the  blacksmith's  trade.  He  was  a  first-rate  blacksmith,  and  fol- 
lowed the  business  all  his  life,  or  as  long  as  he  was  able  to  work. 
He  had  no  early  education,  never  having  entered  a  school-house 
iill  after  he  was  twenty-one  years  old,  and  then  not  as  a  scholar. 

1  George  N.  Briggs,  eldest  son  of  H.  S.  Briggs,  youngest  son  of  Gov.  Briggs. 


20  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.  JJRIGGS. 

His  life  was  one  of  labor  and  toil.  He  was  the  father  of  twelve 
children,  ten  of  whom  reached  maturity.  He  possessed  a  strong, 
discriminating,  logical  mind,  was  an  observer  of  men  and  things, 
and  in  general  information  was  behind  very  few  men  belonging  to 
his  class  of  life  in  his  day,  —  I  mean  mechanics  and  farmers.  He 
had  a  heart  full  of  kindness  and  benevolence,  and  an  integrity  of 
character  worth  more  than  the  gold  of  California  without  it.  I 
never  heard  him  utter  a  sentiment  that  I  could  wish  I  had  not 
heard  from  him ;  and  I  never  heard  him  speak  an  indecent  or  vul- 
gar word,  or  a  word  that  I  should  now  think  would  be  improper 
to  speak  before  a  family  of  children. 

In  religious  sentiment  he  was  a  decided  Baptist,  though  his 
mother  was  a  Quaker.  I  never  heard  him  say  an  uncharitable 
thing  of  other  denominations.  He  heard  preachers  of  all  religious 
sects ;  and  the  pleasure  of  hearing  them  depended  not  upon  the 
name  of  the  preacher,  but  upon  the  soundness,  piety,  and  unction 
of  the  sermon.  Subject  to  the  frailties  of  human  nature,  he  lived 
the  life  of  the  righteous  and  died  his  death. 

The  last  of  August,  1813,  in  my  eighteenth  year,  I  left  his  humble 
but  comfortable  and  hospitable  mansion  in  White  Creek,  Wash- 
ington County,  New  York ;  and,  with  what  few  extra  clothes  I  had 
tied  up  in  a  cotton  handkerchief,  went  out,  I  then  knew  not  whither, 
to  see  what  a  kind  Providence  had  in  reserve  for  me.  Just  before 
I  left  the  house  I  looked  into  that  venerable  face,  then  hung 
around  with  locks  white  as  the  driven  snow,  and  saw  the  full 
round  tears  falling  fast  over  it.  Often,  before  that,  from  my 
infancy,  I  had  seen  the  perspiration  drop  from  the  same  face  and 
brow  upon  the  hot  iron  that  his  strong  arm  was  beating  upon  the 
anvil.  The  hard  blows  thus  given  were  to  earn  bread  for  me. 
When  I  cease  to  remember  and  venerate  that  dear  parent  who 
wielded  them,  or  to  respect  the  occupation  in  which  they  were 
given,  may  my  fellow-men  cease  to  respect  and  my  children  to 
honor  me.  On  his  tombstone  is  written,  "An  honest  man  is  the 
noblest  work  of  God."  I  believe  all  who  knew  him  think  it  belongs 
there.     I  have  no  wish  to  see  or  have  a  different  one  in  its  place. 

I  was  born  in  April,  but  fifteen  days  earlier  in  the  month.     You, 
know  my  poor  history.     Your  birthday  was  the  same  as  that  of 
your  grandfather.     How  much  more  sunny  have  been  your  days 


TRIBUTES  FROM  HIS   OWX  HAXD.  21 

than  his !  Till  the  recent,  and  I  hope  fast-dissolving  cloud  that 
has  shadowed  you  for  a  few  weeks  past,  your  life  has  been  one  of 
brightness.  I  hope  and  believe  there  are  yet  for  you,  and  your 
dear  husband,  many  years  of  sunshine  and  prosperity.  The  inci- 
dents of  your  birthday  I  have  heretofore  given  you,  and  they  need 
not  now  be  repeated.  Our  little  George  N.  is  now  the  representa- 
tive of  the  generation  of  our  family  for  the  27th  of  April.  You 
were  sixty-three  years  behind  your  grandfather ;  and  the  boy  is 
thirty-one  behind  you.  What  there  is  for  him  we  cannot  foresee. 
My  first  and  great  desire  for  him,  as  it  has  always  been  for  my 
own  children,  and  as  I  hope  it  always  will  be  for  all  that  shall  suc- 
ceed me  of  my  own  family,  is,  that  he  may  early  be  a  true  and 
humble  disciple  of  the  Saviour.  If  he  lives,  may  the  great  truth 
sink  speedily  and  deeply  into  his  heart  that  "the  saint  is  greater 
than  the  sage,  and  that  discipleship  to  Jesus  is  the  pinnacle  of 
human  glory."  May  that  glory  belong  to  every  individual  of  all 
the  generations  in  whose  veins  my  blood  may  run. 

You  see  this  letter  is  taken  up  by  talking  of  your  grandfather 
and  father,  of  yourself  and  your  little  co-natal  of  the  27th  of  April. 
Think  you  that  she,  who,  on  the  27th  of  April,  1819,  after  hours 
and  days  of  agony,  gave  birth  to  my  first-born  child,  will  ever 
cease  to  be  the  dearest  one  on  earth  ?  All  my  children  grow  dearer 
as  my  departing  years  bring  me  nearer  to  the  point  of  separation 
from  them.     God  bless  you  all. 

Affectionately  your  father, 

George  N.  Briggs. 

Mrs.  Harriet  C.  B.  Bigelow. 

This  tribute  to  his  honored  and  beloved  father  was  not  a 
mere  artificial  expression,  such  as  a  man  risen  by  the  force 
of  his  own  will  and  wit,  to  public  eminence,  might  choose 
to  make  concerning  those  from  whom  he  had  sprung.  It 
was  in  perfect  harinon}^  with  other  utterances  upon  the 
same  theme,  and  no  less  with  the  spirit  he  continually  man- 
ifested in  his  remembrance  of  his  parents. 

His  friend,  the  Hon.  Charles  Hudson,  having  asked  him, 


22  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

upon  one  occasion,  for  some  written  reminiscences  of  his 
life,  lie  began  his  letter  in  reply  with  an  almost  epigram- 
matic and  equally  modest  expression  of  his  own  estimate 
of  it,  "A  full  length  would  be  only  a  sketch." 

He  then  proceeds  to  speak  of  his  father,  in  terms  of 
honest  pride,  adding  to  other  tributes  these  words  :  — 

"He  was  all  his  life  a  hard- working,  poor,  and  honest  man  —  a 
real  character  of  Seventy- Six.  His  poverty  never  made  him  bow 
his  neck  to  any  man.  He  died  leaving  to  his  children  a  legacy 
worth  more,  and  dearer  far  to  me,  than  the  wealth  of  Croesus,  —  a 
name  as  pure  and  spotless  as  the  snowy  locks  he  carried  to  the 
tomb.    His  epitaph  is,  — 

"  'An  honest  man's  the  noblest  work  of  God.'  " 

It  is  remembered  of  him,  also,  that  when  he  was  informed 
of  his  nomination  for  the  office  of  Governor  of  Massachu- 
setts, he  said,  eagerly,  to  his  daughter  :  "  What  honest  pride 
my  father  would  have  felt  in  the  honor  offered  to  his  son." 

Amid  the  simple  attractions  and  pleasures  of  his  unos- 
tentatious abode,  he  would  say  to  his  children:  "I  could 
desire  nothing  more  to  make  my  enjoyment  of  this  home 
perfect,  except  the  power  to  share  it  with  my  parents. 
But,  then,  they  have  a  better  home  than  I  could  give 
them." 

Reverence  and  love  for  these  excellent  and  faithful  guar- 
dians of  his  childhood  were  but  the  legitimate  emotions  and 
experiences  of  his  nature  and  spirit ;  the  one  uncontami- 
nated  by  the  world,  which  yet  paid  him  tribute ;  and  the 
other  preserving,  amid  the  cares  and  honors  and  burdens 
of  public  life,  the  simplicity  of  his  early  days. 

He  was  but  seven  years  old  when  the  family  removed 
from  South  Adams,  and  made  a  new  home  in  the  village 


MATERXAL   PRIDE.  ?\\ 

of  Manchester,  Vermont.  There,  in  sight  and  within 
the  shadows  of  the  Green  Mountains,  the  most  suscep- 
tible years  of  his  young  life  were  passed ;  and  it  can 
hardly  be  doubted  that  his  natural  surroundings  conspired 
with  home  influences  to  fashion  his  childhood  to  a  lofty 
standard. 

Less  is  recorded  of  that  childhood  than  those  who  knew 
and  honored  and  loved  its  maturity  into  a  large-statured 
manhood,  could  wish  to  have  perpetuated  in  these  memoirs. 
That  it  was  a  period  of  natural  and  ingenuous  happiness,  is 
evident  from  his  own  recollections,  and  from  the  testimon}r 
of  his  brothers.  They  describe  him  as  "a  fair  and  always 
happy  bo}^."  He  was  emphatically  "  the  favorite  of  the 
family."  His  was  a  gentle  and  sunny  nature,  characterized 
withal  by  such  intelligence,  vivacity,  and  shrewdness,  that 
his  mother,  with  a  true  prophetic  forecast,  not  far  removed, 
it  may  be,  from  simple  maternal  instinct,  was  in  the  habit 
of  calling  him  her  "  little  lawyer." 

She  was  justly  proud  of  that  character  and  of  that  career, 
of  which  her  mother's  heart  had  sufficient  prevision,  to  be 
interpreted  by  her  fondness  and  faith  into  a  verity. 

Doubtless  George's  childhood  was  toned  and  shaded,  to 
some  extent,  by  the  narrow  material  resources  of  his  home. 
But  these,  on  the  other  hand,  hy  necessitating  the  employ- 
ment of  every  hand  in  the  household  not  really  too  feeble 
to  help,  served  as  a  stimulus  to  those  energies  in  the  boy's 
nature  which  might  have  lain  dormant  in  conditions  of 
affluence,  and  which,  unstirred  in  his  early  life,  might  never 
have  been  aroused  to  that  efficiency  which  marked  their 
exertion  and  their  products  in  his  after  career. 

The  demands  of  a  large  family  upon  the  father's  and 
mother's  toil  had  these  opposite  effects ;  that  while  they 


24  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  S.   BR1GGS. 

developed  the  physical  and  moral  forces  of  the  man  into  a 
stalwart  and  noble  strength  for  endurance  and  action,  they 
consumed  the  life  energies  of  the  gentler  woman  ;  and  there 
is  left  for  us,  to  awaken  our  sympathies,  the  picture,  from  a 
granddaughter's  hand,  of  "the  self-sacrificing  devotion  of 
the  overwrought  mother,  whose  toils  and  hardships  made 
her  prematurely  a  little  child  in  her  age." 

But  George's  childhood  felt  not  the  shadows  of  this  final 
wasting  away  of  his  mother's  strength.  Her  smiles  and 
her  benedictions  fell  upon  all  its  progress  with  their  sunny 
and  invigorating  influence,  giving  fresh  sweetness  to  the 
ringing  but  not  boisterous  music  of  his  laughter,  and  call- 
ing  forth,  even  in  the  bo}T,  the  gentle  and  genial  tempers 
and  manners,  which  in  the  man,  the  statesman,  and  the 
Christian,  were  matured  into  assiduous,  and  in  their 
measure  and  persistence  almost  exceptional  courtesies  and 
amenities,  in  every  phase  and  position  of  his  life. 

The  twofold  spell  of  the  parental  power — the  unswerv- 
ing and  sturdy  manliness  of  the  honest  toiling  father,  and 
the  unselfish  and  vigilant  tenderness  of  the  no  less  busy 
mother ;  and  these  diverse  but  inter-active  agencies,  both 
intensified  and  sanctified  hy  the  grace  of  God,  moulded  the 
bo}T's  character  into  a  fixedness  of  right  purpose,  which  no 
subsequent  temptations  of  personal  or  public  circumstances 
availed  to  pervert  into  evil  courses,  or  even  to  warp  into 
proclivities  to  nnlovely  habits. 

"Who  is  able,"  asks  Goethe,1  "to  speak  worthily  of  the 
fulness  of  childhood?"  Certainly,  it  would  be  a  task  of 
no  common  magnitude  to  define  and  exhaust  the  meaning, 
the  prophetic  signs  of  that  particular  childhood  which  is 
here  passed  in  review.     The  completed  life,  the  broad  and 

1  Autobiography. 


HOME  INFLUENCES.  2o 

lofty  development  into  which  it  advanced,  steadily,  if  not 
with  splendor  of  progress — these  alone  can  express  the 
true  comprehensiveness  of  it.  Every  part  of  the  unfolding 
and  maturing  process  must,  therefore,  have  its  peculiar 
interest  and  profit. 

3 


CHAPTER    II. 

ANOTHER    CHANGE   OF   HOME  — EARLY   RELIGIOUS   TRAINING  —  EXPERIENCE 
/  OF  RELIGION — RELIGIOUS  EARNESTNESS — BOYISH  ELOQUENCE  —  REMARK- 

ABLE SCENES  —  AN  OLD  BALLAD  —  PRAYER  EXTRAORDINARY  —  APPREN- 
TICESHIP TO  A  QUAKER  HATTER  —  ANECDOTES — AT  SCHOOL  —  INCIDENT 
OF  LATER  LIFE  —  LETTER  TO   THE  CHURCH  HE  JOINED  IN  HIS  YOUTH. 

HE  sojourn  of  the  family  in  their  Vermont  home  was 
brief.  At  the  end  of  two  years  after  their  removal 
thither,  they  left  it  for  the  State  of  New  York.  In 
1805  the  village  of  White  Creek,  in  Washington 
County,  became  the  place  of  their  abode,  and  the 
scene  of  important  experiences  to  the  young  subject  of 
this  memoir. 

His  training  had  always  been  of  a  decidedly  religious 
character.  The  strict,  though  by  no  means  sombre  piety 
of  his  parents,  controlled  the  moral  discipline  of  the  house- 
hold. The  Bible  was  to  them  a  book  of  meaning  and  of 
authority,  and  their  children  were  taught  to  honor  and 
obey  its  precepts.  From  its  decisions,  as  the}'  were  con- 
scientiously interpreted  to  them,  there  could  be  no  appeal ; 
and  their  consciences,  unseared  by  worldliness  and  victori- 
ous passions,  were  easily  impressed  with  a  sense  of  the 
fitness  of  that  standard  of  life  which  the  Bible  proclaims. 

The  spirit  and  practice  of  piety  in  the  parents  thus  repro- 
duced themselves,  as  if  by  an  inevitable  law  of  sequence, 
in  the  children.  The  inspired  philosoplry,  embodied  in  the 
precept,  "Train  up  a  child  in  the  way  he  should  go,  and 
when  he  is  old  he  will  not  depart  from  it,"  had  a  remarkable 

26 


RELIGIOUS  EAEXESTXESS.  27 

exemplification  in  the  development  of  religious  tendencies 
in  the  mind  of  the  amiable  and  gentle  boy.  While  he  was 
in  his  fourteenth  year  he  became  the  subject  of  personal 
religious  experience,  and  was  soon  after  baptized  and 
received  into  the  Baptist  church  at  White  Creek. 

This  happy  result  was,  undoubtedly,  induced  chiefly  by 
the  development  and  progress,  in  the  place  where  he  lived, 
of  one  of  those  apparently  phenomenal  epochs  in  the  life  of 
the  church  which  are  called  Revivals.  These  were  now 
of  frequent  occurrence  in  this  country,  and  sometimes  of 
such  striking  power  as  to  excite  wonder  and  awe  outside 
of  the  pale  of  the  church. 

George  entered  with  characteristic  eagerness  into  the 
new  and  almost  fascinating  interests  of  the  religious  ser- 
vices  which  attended,  with  growing  frequency,  the  progress 
of  the  work  of  grace  in  White  Creek. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  he  so  speedily  yielded  himself  to 
the  growing  influence,  or  that  when  he  did  so  he  should 
give  himself  up,  with  boyish  enthusiasm  and  sincerity,  to 
the  service  of  Christ.  In  his  after  life  he  looked  back  upon 
this  period  with  a  profound  interest,  and  often  realized  how 
little  he  could  then  have  known  of  the  true  character  and 
power  of  sin  in  his  nature,  as  compared  with  those  pro- 
founder  views  and  convictions  of  it  which  evermore  quick- 
ened his  apprehension  of  the  grace  of  Christ  in  His  work  of 
atonement. 

Xo  sooner  was  the  boy  numbered  with  the  young  con- 
verts, than  he  began  to  exhort  others  to  seek  the  salvation 
of  their  souls.  His  extreme  youth  gave  to  his  ardent 
appeals  an  extraordinary  charm,  and  carried  them  to  many 
hearts  with  resistless  effect.  He  says,  in  reference  to  this 
period :  "I  was  then  a  white-headed  little  boy.     I  used  to 


28  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BJRIGG8. 

attend  all  the  meetings  with  the  gray-headed  old  men,  and 
felt  as  old  as  any  of  them." 

In  this  naive  acknowledgment  of  his  self-imagined  equal- 
ity of  age  with  the  men  of  gray  hairs  in  regard  to  religious 
experience,  the  ingenuousness  of  his  character  appears ; 
and  not  less  manifestly  the  secret  of  his  remarkable  bold- 
ness in  the  part  he  took  in  the  exciting  scenes  around  him. 

For  a  graphic  and  deeply  interesting  glimpse  of  the  boy 
at  this  time,  the  reader  is  indebted  to  the  reminiscences  of 
the.Hon.  Hiland  Hall,  of  Vermont,  who  was,  in  his  youth, 
George's  occasional  companion,  and  not  much  his  senior. 
Their  subsequent  association  in  Congress  advanced  their 
earty,  though  slight,  acquaintance  into  warm  friendship. 
Mr.  Hall  writes  to  Mrs.  Bigelow,  under  date  of  North 
Bennington,  December  23,  1861.     He  sa}ys, — 

"  The  first  remembrance  1  have  of  your  father  was  about  the 
year  1810  (possibly  1809),  when  he  lived  at  "White  Creek,  some  five 
or  six  miles  from  my  own  residence,  and  when  he  was  from  thir- 
teen to  fourteen  years  old.  It  was  during  the  excitement  of  a 
religious  revival,  when  his  eloquent  and  what  were  deemed  almost 
miraculous  addresses  in  religious  meetings  drew  together  great 
crowds  of  people,  and  elicited  very  general  and  extensive  appre- 
ciation and  admiration." 

Numerous  as  are  the  remarkable  points  and  positions  in 
the  public  life  of  the  subject  of  this  memoir,  there  is  prob- 
ably none  so  well  calculated  to  excite  surprise  as  this 
extraordinary  representation  of  him  in  his  }*oung  boyhood. 

We  behold  a  scene  of  singular  and  marvellous  interest. 
A  mere  child  stands  before  us,  in  the  midst  of  a  great 
throng  of  people,  many  of  them  as  old  in  years  as  he  was 
young,  whom  he  holds,  as  in  a  spell,  by  the  strange  fascina- 


QOYISH  ELOQUENCE.  29 

tion  of  his  speech,  as  he  dwells,  now,  perhaps,  upon  some 
grave  and  perplexing  doctrine  of  theology,  or,  anon,  pleads 
in  impassioned  strains  with  the  impenitent  around  him  to 
"flee  from  the  wrath  to  come,"  and  take  shelter  in  the  arms 
of  that  Saviour  whom  he  had  round.  Not  a  little  is  added 
to  the  effect  of  this  almost  unique  representation  by  the 
fact  that  his  venerable  father  was  in  the  assemblies,  and 
one  of  the  most  eager  of  his  auditors. 

The  granddaughter,  writing  of  these  occasions,  from  her 
recollections  of  her  father's  words,  says,  — 

"  His  father  in  these  meetings  was  the  sweet  singer  of  this 
Israel.  His  voice  and  patriarchal  presence  were  exceedingly  im- 
pressive.    None  who  ever  heard  him  sing,  — 

c  The  day  is  past  and  gone, 

The  evening  shades  appear; ' 

or  those  other  scarcely  less  familiar  lines,  — 

1 1  saw  one  hanging  on  a  tree, 
In  agony  and  blood, 
"Who  fixed  his  dying  eyes  on  me, 
As  near  the  cross  I  stood ! '  — 

could  ever  forget  the  rich  pathos  of  his  tones.  My  father  could 
sing  only  with  his  soul.  He  had  little  ear  for  music,  except  as 
blended  with  sentiment ;  but  all  through  his  life  sang  some  of  his 
father's  hymns.  An  old  ballad,  which  we  older  children  remember 
hearing  grandfather  sing  with  almost  dramatic  effect,  and  which 
father  sung  for  us  when  we  were  little,  is  out  of  print,  but  is  still 
sacredly  preserved  in  the  family." l 

iThe  reader  may  be  gratified  to  find  at  his  command  a  copy  of  this  ballad,  and 
it  would  seem  to  have  a  right  to  a  place  in  these  memorials.    It  is  entitled 

THE  SACRIFICE. 

"  The  morning  sun  rose  bright  and  clear; 
On  Abram's  tent  it  gayly  shone ; 
And  all  was  bright  and  cheerful  there, — 
All,  save  the  patriarch's  heart  alone. 
3* 


30  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

It  is  difficult  for  us,  perhaps,  to  comprehend  the  reason, 
or  rather  the  process,  of  this  strange  power  of  the  boy  over 

"When  God's  command  arose  to  mind, 

It  forced  into  his  eyes  a  tear ; 
Although  his  soul  was  all  resigned, 

Yet  nature  fondly  lingered  there. 

The  simple  morning  feast  was  spread, 

And  Sarah  at  the  banquet  smiled; 
Joy  on  her  face  its  lustre  spread, 

For  near  her  sat  her  only  child. 

The  charm  that  pleased  a  monarch's  eye 

Upon  her  cheek  had  left  its  trace, 
His  highly-augured  destiny 

Was  written  on  his  heavenly  face. 

The  groaning  father  turned  away, 

And  walked  the  inner  tent  apart ; 
He  felt  his  fortitude  decay, 

While  nature  whispered  in  his  heart,  — 

"  Oh  I  must  this  son,  to  whom  was  given 
The  promise  of  a  blessed  land,  — 
Heir  to  the  choicest  gifts  of  Heaven, — 
Be  slain  by  a  fond  father's  hand  ? 

44  This  son  for  whom  my  eldest-born 
Was  sent  an  outcast  from  his  home, 
And  in  some  wilderness  forlorn, 
A  savage  exile,  doomed  to  roam. 

"  But  shall  a  feeble  worm  rebel, 
And  murmur  at  a  Father's  rod  ; 
Shall  he  be  backward  to  fulfil 
The  known  and  certain  will  of  God? 

Arise,  my  son,  the  cruet  fill, 

And  store  the  scrip  with  due  supplies, 
For  we  must  seek  Moriah's  hill, 

And  offer  there  a  sacrifice." 

The  mother  raised  a  speaking  eye, 

For  all  a  mother's  soul  was  there ; 
She  feared  the  desert  drear  and  dry, 

She  feared  the  savage  lurking  there. 


AN  OLD  BALLAD.  31 

the  minds  of  adults  and  venerable  men.     It  is  not  to  be 
supposed  that  he  uttered  remarkable  things  in  doctrine,  or 

Abram  beheld  and  made  reply,  — 

"  On  Him  from  whom  our  blessings  flow, 

My  sister,  we  by  faith  rely ; 
'Tis  God's  command,  and  we  must  go." 

The  duteous  son  in  haste  obeyed, 
The  scrip  was  filled,  the  mules  prepared; 

And  with  the  third  day's  twilight  shade 
Moriah's  lofty  hill  appeared. 

The  menials  then  at  distance  wait,  — 

Alone  ascend  the  son  and  sire ; 
The  wood  on  Isaac's  shoulder's  laid, 

The  wood  to  build  his  funeral  pyre. 

No  passions  sway  the  father's  mind, — 

He  felt  a  calm,  a  death-like  chill ; 
His  soul  was  meek  and  all  resigned, 

Bowed  quickly,  though  he  shuddered  still. 

While  on  the  mountain's  brow  they  stood, 
With  smiling  wonder  Isaac  cries : 
"  My  father  I  lo,  the  fire  and  wood, 

But  where 's  the  lamb  for  sacrifice  ?  " 

The  Holy  Spirit  stayed  his  mind, 

While  Abram  answered,  low  and  calm, 
With  steady  voice  and  look  resigned, 

"  God  will  provide  Himself  the  lamb." 

But,  lo !  the  father  bound  his  son, 

And  laid  him  on  the  funeral  pile, 
And  then  stretched  forth  his  trembling  hand, 

And  took  the  knife  to  slay  his  child. 

While  Abram  raised  the  blade  full  high, 

To  execute  his  Lord's  command, 
An  angel's  voice,  as  from  the  sky, 

Cried,  "Abram,  spare  thine  only  son." 

But  let  no  pen  profane  like  mine 

On  holiest  things  too  rashly  dare, — 
Turn  to  that  Book  of  Books  divine, 

And  read  the  precious  promise  there  1 


32  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

in  experience.  A  simpler  conclusion  would  be  more  in 
keeping  with  the  facts.  The  exceeding  3routhfulness  of  the 
speaker,  the  rarely  paralleled  boldness  of  his  position,  the 
fluency  of  his  language,  the  nature  of  his  themes,  and, 
superadded  to  these  things,  the  tumultuousness  of  emotion 
which  seizes  upon  the  multitude  in  times  of  powerful 
religious  influence,  make  up  a  very  probable  explanation 
of  the  effect  produced  by  the  ardent  and  persuasive  ha- 
rangues of  the  zealous  child  upon  a  primitive  and  simple- 
minded  people. 

It  is  hardly  to  be  questioned  that  the  interior  force, 
behind  these  efforts,  was  strong  and  real.  It  is  in  striking 
evidence  of  the  justice  of  this  conclusion,  that  the  religious 
life  of  the  boy,  thus  commenced  in  fervor  of  demonstra- 
tion, progressed  with  the  steady  force  of  principle,  and 
finally  matured  into  a  symmetrical,  controlling,  and  pro- 
ductive Christian  character,  of  sadly  infrequent  manifesta- 
tion in  these  da}^s. 

Be}rond  a  doubt,  to  the  Christian  men  and  women  who 
were  moved  to  tears  and  praises  by  his  words,  if  not  to  the 
heedless  ones  who  heard  him,  but  regarded  him  only  as  a 
boyish  phenomenon,  his  labors  in  those  district  and  village 
school-houses  seemed  to  verify  the  language  of  the  Psalmist, 
"  Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and  sucklings  hast  Thou 
ordained  strength." 

These  recollections  of  his  childhood  were  alwaj^s  a  source 
of  pleasure  to  him  ;  and  he  dwelt  with  interest  upon  the 


Age.?  on  ages  rolled  away ; 

At  length  the  time  appointed  came, 
And  on  the  mountain  Calvary 

God  did  Himself  provide  the  Lamb!" 
3* 


PRAYER  EXTRAORDINARY.  33 

simplicity  of  the  Christian  people  of  the  period  and  of  the 
locality  to  which  they  refer. 

There  were  not  wanting,  moreover,  amusing  and  ludicrous 
incidents  in  connection  with  the  school-house  scenes  and 
services,  which  appealed  irresistibly  to  his  acute  sense  of 
the  humorous. 

On  one  occasion  there  existed  a  neighborhood  misunder- 
standing, and  the  difficulty  was  not  forgotten  in  the  place 
of  worship.  Indeed,  it  may  have  been  purposely  brought 
into  it.  At  all  events,  one  of  the  aggrieved  parties,  and  a 
prominent  leader  in  the  circles  of  prayer,  thus  emphatically 
expressed  himself  in  an  address  to  the  throne  of  grace : 
"  Thou  knowest,  O  Lord,  that is  a  great  liar." 

In  far  later  }Tears,  one  of  his  children,  hearing  this  inci- 
dent narrated,  said  to  him  :  "  Can  this  be  true,  father?" 

"  True?  "  said  he  ;  "I  heard  it  myself! '  and  then  pro- 
ceeded to  give  the  names  of  the  parties  to  the  quarrel. 

It  must  have  been  soon,  if  not  immediately  after  this 
period  of  religious  excitement,  that  George  left  his  father's 
house,  to  live  with  a  Quaker  by  the  name  of  John  Allen, 
that  he  might  learn  from  him  the  hatter's  trade.  In  this 
service  he  spent  three  }'ears,  and  alwaj^s  cherished  for  "  the 
excellent  Quaker,"  as  he  calls  him,  a  sincere  feeling  of 
respect. 

Although  the  lad  must  have  made  such  proficiency  in  his 
art  as  would  have  enabled  him  to  pursue  it  on  his  own 
account,  he  never  resumed  it  after  leaving  his  Quaker  mas- 
ter. That  he  did  not  hold  his  trade  in  contempt,  is  clear 
from  the  fact  that  he  always  prided  himself  rather  upon  his 
knowledge  of  it. 

It  is  related  of  him,  that  when  he  was  holding  the  highest 
office  his  native  State  could  confer  upon  him,  being  on  one 


34  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGCS. 

occasion  in  a  brilliant  company,  a  lady  said  to  him,  "May 
I  ask,  Governor,  at  what  college  }Tou  graduated  ? ' 

With  great  gravity  and  courtesy  of  manner,  he  instantly 
replied,  "At  a  hatter's  shop,  madam." 

Beyond  that  period  of  his  youth  passed  with  John  Allen, 
he  himself  gives  us  a  brief  glance  in  advance  :  — 

"  Then,  in  an  irregular  manner,  I  attended  for  a  year  a  respecta- 
ble grammar  school,  my  studies  being  very  much  interrupted  by 
other  indispensable  occupations." 

During  this  year  he  lived  again  with  his  father,  "doing 
chores,"  as  he  phrases  it,  "  for  a  family  of  ten  or  twelve, 
going  to  school  as  I  could  catch  it."  In  these  words  we 
have  the  key  to  what  he  sajTs  about  the  interruption  of  his 
studies  by  "  indispensable  occupations." 

'  The  energy  and  resoluteness  which  carried  him  at  all 
available  intervals  of  his  toil  to  the  school-house,  doubtless 
gave  to  his  studies,  however  interrupted  and  fragmentary, 
a  measure  of  success,  which  does  not  always  crown  unin- 
termitted  and  protracted  opportunites  for  acquiring  knowl- 
edge. The  boy  was  in  earnest  in  the  hatter's  shop  and  at 
the  academy-desk  alike  ;  and  his  spirit,  while  at  the  latter 
for  only  a  few  brief  months,  doubtless  compensated,  in 
great  part,  for  much  bodily  and  unwelcome  absence 
from  it. 

Akin  to  the  incident  just  narrated,  and  illustrating  the 
absence  in  his  character  of  all  foolish  pride  about  his  early 
life  and  experiences,  is  another,  which  also  occurred  in 
184G,  when  he  was  Governor  of  Massachusetts. 

He  was  one  day  in  Methuen,  and  visited  the  large  hat 
manufactory  of  Mr.  Ingalls.  When  in  the  vat  room,  he 
saw  the  old  familiar  processes  of  the  trade  going  forward  — 


LETTER   TO    THE   CHURCH.  37 

the  workmen  surrounding  the  vat,  their  sleeves  rolled  up  to 
the  shoulder,  and  going  through  the  usual  manipulations. 
He  stood  looking  on  with  eager  interest,  and  after  leaving 
the  shop  told  those  with  him,  that,  but  for  the  apparent 
affectation  of  the  thing,  he  should  have  taken  off  his  coat, 
rolled  up  his  sleeves,  and  joined  in  the  work,  adding,  as  he 
said  this  with  a  genial  smile  upon  his  fine  features,  "  I  be- 
lieve I  could  make  a  good  hat  now,  in  the  old  way.  I 
always  liked  to  do  it.     It  was  comfortable  work." 

The  love  which  the  young  disciple  bore  to  the  little 
church  in  White  Creek  was  not  extinguished  by  his  early 
separation  from  its  services  and  fellowship.  A  whole  gen- 
eration of  men  passed  away  in  the  interval  which  elapsed 
between  the  time  of  his  departure  from  White  Creek  and 
his  earliest  subsequent  communication  with  the  church 
there.  After  he  settled  in  Pittsfield,  he  applied  to  his 
early  Christian  associates  for  a  letter  of  dismission,  and 
the  epistle  he  addressed  to  them  breathes  an  affection  so 
tender,  and  displays  so  strikingly  the  loving  spirit  of  the 
mature  Christian,  whose  boyhood  we  have  been  tracing,  that 
it  cannot  but  be  deemed  an  appropriate  close  to  this  chap- 
ter of  White  Creek  reminiscences.  It  will  be  noticed  that 
its  date  is  thirty-one  years  later  than  the  times  just  re- 
viewed. It  is  addressed  to  the  church  through  its  pastor, 
Rev.  D.  Tinkham  :  — 

Pittsfield,  March  28th,  1844. 
My  dear  Friend  : 

I  suppose  you  are  yet  the  pastor  of  the  church  at  White  Creek. 
Far  back  in  the  records  of  that  church,  I  think  in  the  year  1810  or 
'11,  will  be  found  the  name  that  is  at  the  bottom  of  this  letter. 
Never  having  transferred  my  relation  from  that  body,  I  should  be 
glad,  even  at  this  late  day,  if  consistent  with  their  views,  to  have 
a  letter  from  them. 
4 


38  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  K.   BRIGGS. 

As  a  period  of  time  greater  than  that  allotted  to  a  generation  of 
men  has  passed  away  since  in  my  boyhood  I  became  a  humble 
member  of  a  band  of  believers,  I  conclude  that  most  of  the 
beloved  ones  who  were  then  its  members  have  gone  to  their  rest. 
The  names  of  Parker,  Curtis,  Smith,  Center,  Fowler,  and  Shed, 
are  fresh  in  my  memory  as  in  the  morning  of  youth.  They  were 
to  me  fathers  in  Israel.  Their  venerable  forms  and  hoary  heads 
are,  I  suppose,  all  laid  low  in  the  peaceful  grave.  Their  spirits,  I 
doubt  not,  are  with  Him  who  once  wore  a  crown  of  thorns,  but 
who  is  now  the  light  and  glory  of  the  New  Jerusalem,  and  the  joy 
of  the  saints  in  heaven.  Into  the  service  of  that  Prince  of  Peace 
who  has  taken  them  home,  I  enlisted  at  the  age  of  fourteen  years. 
He  is  the  best  Prince  and  Master  that  was  ever  served.  Truth 
compels  me  to  say  that  I  have  been  a  poor  soldier;  yet  I  hope  I 
may  say,  with  equal  truth,  that  while  I  have  lacked  zeal,  I  have 
never  denied  my  allegiance,  even  in  the  enemy's  countiy ;  nor  have 
I  ever,  for  a  single  moment,  regretted  that  I  so  early  entered  so 
glorious  a  service. 

Since  I  left  White  Creek  in  1813,  I  have  never  met  with  the 
church.  My  thoughts  have  often,  very  often,  in  the  midst  of  the 
varied  scenes  in  which  I  have  been  placed,  gone  out  toward  them 
with  a  warmth  and  an  affection  that  belonged  not  to  earth.  I  have 
frequently  sighed  to  visit  and  hold  communion  with  those  friends 
who  remained  of  the  number  with  whom  I  united  my  destiny, 
and  to  mingle  my  sympathy  with  those  who  have  joined  them  since. 
Whether,  in  the  Providence  of  God,  I  shall  ever  have  this  happiness 
on  earth,  I  know  not.  But  whether  I  do  or  not,  I  wish  them  the 
richest  blessings  of  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church,  and  pray  that  He 
who  keepeth  Israel,  and  who  neither  slumbers  nor  .sleeps,  may  be 
with  them  and  have  them  in  His  care.  Though  personally  a  stranger 
to  nearly  every  one  of  the  present  members,  they  are  a  continuation 
of  the  church  of  which  I  was  a  member  in  the  morning  of  my  days, 
and  which  had  my  first  love.  As  brethren  of  the  church  they  have 
my  warmest  Christian  affection ;  and  they,  I  trust,  will  continue  to 
have  it  till  the  pulsation  of  my  heart  shall  be  stopped  by  death. 

With  highest  regards  to  yourself  and  family  and  to  the  church, 
I  am  your  brother  and  friend. 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 


CHAPTER    Til. 

SEVENTEEN  —  BEGINS  THE  STUDY  OF  LAW— COURAGE  —  HIS  ELDEST 
BROTHER  — HIS  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIM  —  REMOVAL  TO  LANES- 
BORO' — HABITS  OF  STUDY  —  MORE  LETTERS  TO  HIS  BROTHER  —  HIS 
BROTHER'S  DEATH  —  REVIVAL  IN  LANESBORO'  — A  THEOLOGICAL  DIS- 
CUSSION—PLEASANT   FRIENDSHIPS. 

/HE  boy  of  our  narrative  has  now  reached  the  bor- 
fTJ    clers  of  young  manhood,  at  the  threshold  of  his 
£  eighteenth  year,  as  he  commences,  in  remarkable 
circumstances,  the  study  of  law. 

In  the  same  letter  in  which  he  speaks  of  his 
departure  from  the  shop  of  the  excellent  Quaker,  and  of  his 
brief  school  life,  there  is  found  also  this  passage,  which  dis- 
closes the  undaunted  courage  and  noble  independence  of 
the  }~oung  hero  :  — 

"  In  August,  1813,  with  five  dollars  I  had  earned  at  haying,  I  left 
home  to  go  to  studying  law  or  medicine.  I  had  a  brother  living 
on  the  Hudson  whom  I  visited  in  September,  and  then,  with  my 
trunk  on  my  back,1  came  into  Berkshire  County,  penniless,  and  a 
stranger  to  all,  except  a  few  relatives  and  friends,  most  of  them  as 
poor  as  I  was,  and  that  was  poor  enough.  My  brother  aided  me 
some  until  1816,  when  he  died." 

The  brother  to  whom  he  here  alludes  was  Rufus,  the  eld- 
est of  the  family.     He  was  the  confidential  business  agent 

iThis  little  trunk  lie  carefully  preserved,  and  only  a  few  days  before  his  death 
repaired  it  with  his  own  hands,  and  affixed  to  it  a  card,  giving  its  history,  up  to 
the  time  he  began  to  study  law.     (See  page  41). 

39 


40  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

of  Chancellor  Livingston,  whose  sincere  respect  and  cordial 
friendship  he  enjoyed.  He  was  a  man  of  spotless  integ- 
rity, of  great  executive  talent,  and  of  a  just  and  generous 
nature.  With  only  limited  means,  and  a  considerable 
family,  he  was  not  able  to  offer  his  younger  brother  lavish 
help,  which,  indeed,  he  would  not  have  accepted,  and,  hap- 
pily, did  not  need.  His  wants  were  easily  supplied,  and 
the  kindness  which  answered  their  calls  was  abundantly 
repaid  in  kind. 

Only  three  years  was  George  the  beneficiary  of  his  elder 
brother,  when  the  death  of  the  latter  threw  him  entirely 
upon  his  own  resources.  They  proved  adequate  to  his 
needs,  and,  beyond  providing  for  himself,  he  became  the 
sympathizing  helper  and  friend  of  the  widow  and  fatherless 
children  his  brother  left  behind  him.  When  his  brother's 
estate  was  settled,  its  value  was  so  depreciated  that  the 
family  were  impoverished.  The  mother  died  soon  after, 
leaving  four  sons,  and  one  of  them  a  hopeless  invalid,  as  a 
sort  of  special  trust  to  their  young  uncle.  After  he  mar- 
ried, his  house  was  more  or  less  the  home  of  these  orphans. 
Two  of  them  were  with  him  seven  years,  and  both  of  them 
have  since  achieved  an  honorable  career.  The  other  two 
found  earl}7  graves. 

As  Rums  Briggs  was  the  chief  patron  of  the  young 
aspirant  in  his  professional  adventure,  some  of  the  letters 
which  passed  between  them  at  this  time  will  find  a  fit  place 
in  these  pages. 

The  following  letter  was  written  soon  after  George's 
visit  to  his  brother  :  — 

Adams,  Oct.  15th,  1813. 
Respected  Brother  : 

I  arrived  at  Adams  the  day  after  I  left  you.  Being  anxious  to 
commence  my  studies,  and  preferring  law  to  physic,  I  thought  it 


%*>     <£/&  /<f/3    J  Oi-^^C^-//^,    <fe^*-^ 


(See  page  39.) 


THE  NEW  YORK 

PUBLIC  LIBRARY. 


ASTOR,   LEN®X  AND 
TILDEN    FOUNDATIONS. 


LETTERS   TO  HIS  BROTHER.  43 

best,  with  the  advice  of  Jesse  Whipple,  to  converse  with  Esquire 
Kasson  on  the  subject,  who  informed  me  that  the  law,  in  this 
State,  requires  four  years'  study  without  a  classical  education,  and 
three  years  with ;  and  finding  his  terms  to  be  very  reasonable,  and 
Jesse  recommending  him  to  be  an  honorable  man,  and  a  man  of 
talents,  I  have  concluded,  and  I  hope  not  prematurely,  to  enter  his 
ofiice  on  these  conditions.  As  he  had  no  personal  acquaintance 
with  me,  he  had  rather  not  positively  determine  any  further  than 
this  :  that  for  tuition,  use  of  his  library,  candles,  and  firewood,  he 
should  charge  not  more  than  forty  dollars,  and  not  less  than 
thirty,  and  he  thought  not  much  over  thirty ;  whereas  the  custom- 
ary expense  in  this  State  is  sixty-two  dollars  per  annum 

With  respect,  I  am  yours,  &c., 

G.  N.  Briggs. 
Mr.  B.  Briggs. 

A  month  seems  to  have  exhausted  the  first  bounty 
George  received  from  his  brother,  and  with  much  delicacy 
he  ventures  to  ask  for  a  little  more  :  — 

Adams,  Nov.  18th,  1813. 
Dear  Brother  : 

Having  been  disappointed  in  your  not  being  here  ere  now,  I  hasten 
to  drop  you -a  line  by  mail.  I  have  heard  nothing  from  White  Creek 
since  my  arrival  at  Adams.  By  paying  pretty  dear  for  some  part 
of  my  passage  from  Hudson,  and  being  under  the  necessity  of  pro- 
curing some  few  necessaries  pertaining  to  my  study,  and  some 
few  articles  of  clothing,  of  which  old  Boreas  taught  me  I  stood  in 
need,  I  have  expended  what  money  you  gave  me.  Necessity 
requires  some  other  things,  both  for  clothing  and  office.  A  little 
more  cash  would  be  gratefully  received,  if  convenient,  without 
incommoding  you.  Thanks  are  the  only  return  I  am  at  present 
capable  of  making ;  but  hope,  the  anchor  of  the  mind,  reaches  to 
the  time  when  I  shall  be  enabled  to  refund  the  money,  though  not 
the  favors  of  so  kind  a  brother  and  so  generous  a  friend.    A  trifle 


44  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

will  answer  my  purpose  for  the  present.    If  convenient  to  favor 
me,  be  so  good  as  to  send  it  immediately. 
With  respect,  I  remain 

Your  brother  and  friend, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

Mr.  R.  Briggs,  Saugerties,  N.  Y. 

• 

The  following  letter  is  from  a  brother-in-law  who  resided 
in  Adams,  and,  while  supplying  a  link  in  the  chain  of  the 
arrangements  made  for  the  inauguration  of  the  }roung 
aspirant  in  a  law  office,  bears  testimony  to  his  economy, 
manliness,  assiduity,  and  amiability  :  — 

Adams,  Jan.  18,  1814. 
Dear  Brother  Rufus: 

I  received  your  letter  requesting  me  to  board  George,  and  to 
furnish  him  with  necessary  clothing  and  some  pocket  money.  He 
is  boarding  with  me.  His  calls  on  me  for  clothing  and  cash  are  as 
yet  so  small,  that  they  seem  scarcely  worth  mentioning.  George 
is  uncommonly  steady,  and  attends  to  his  studies  very  closely.  He 
has  gained  the  esteem  of  both  old  and  young  in  the  village.  Mr. 
Kasson  informs  me  that  he  progresses  rapidly  in  his  studies,  and 
thinks  he  bids  fair  to  make  an  eminent  lawyer.  Mr.  Kasson  is 
considered,  by  men  more  competent  to  judge  of  talents  than 
myself,  to  be  a  man  of  ability. 

You  have  the  best  wishes  of  your  brother  and  sister  for  the  wel- 
fare of  your  wife  and  family. 

Jesse  Whipple. 

Mr.  Rufus  Briggs. 

In  the  next  letter  the  elder  brother  speaks  for  himself ; 
and  the  tone  of  his  utterance  is  the  ring  of  good  metal. 
His  kindness  of  heart,  his  sagacity,  his  sound  judgment, 
his  far-sightedness,  are  all  tokens  of  a  wise  and  good  char- 
acter. He  evidently  appreciates  the  nature  of  law  learning, 
when  he  suggests  to  his  young  brother  a  period  of  twenty 
years'  study  as  the  conditions  of  "  fame  and  fortune  "  :  — 


REMOVAL   TO  LAXESBOIiO\  15 

Saugerties  Mill,  24th  Not.,  1813. 
Dear  Brother  : 

I  have  this  moment  received  your  last  letter.  You  will  please 
call  on  Jesse  for  what  money  you  may  want  before  I  see  you, 
which  will  be  at  the  first  good  sleighing ;  and  I  will  repay  him 
then.  You  must  pay  every  attention  to  your  studies;  indeed,  I 
have  no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  you  will.  In  order  to  insure  to 
yourself  fame  and  fortune,  you  must  study  hard  for  at  least  twenty 
years,  and  digest  well  what  you  read,  and  must  know  the  why  and 
the  wherefore.  My  Lords  Coke  and  Littleton  must  be  your  par- 
ticular and  intimate  friends.  You  must  read  and  well  digest  all 
the  Keports,  and  study  well  the  practice,  not  only  of  law,  but  of 
justice.  And  now  I  charge  you,  never  to  undertake  what  you 
believe  to  be  an  unjust  cause  for  money;  but  at  all  times  be  ready 
to  assist,  with  all  the  powers  the  God  of  nature  has  given  you,  the 
poor  man  in  a  just  cause,  for  the  love  of  justice,  and  to  acquire  for 
yourself  immortality  and  fame. 

Your  dear  brother, 

R.  Briggs. 

Mr.  G.  N.  Briggs. 

Of  the  young  student's  life  at  Adams,  only  here  and 
there  a  reminiscence  is  to  be  gleaned  from  letters  written 
at  that  period,  or  from  allusions  to  it  contained  in  some 
brief  autobiographical  notes  made  at  the  wish  of  his  chil- 
dren and  friends.  It  was  a  brief  period,  not  much  exceed- 
ing a  year,  for  in  1814  he  removed  to  Lanesboro',  another 
village  of  Berkshire,  not  less  picturesque  in  its  surround- 
ings than  Adams,  and  becoming  to  him  in  later  years  the 
centre  of  many  happy  memories  and  fond  associations. 

There  he  pursued  his  law  studies  in  the  office  of  Luther 
Washburn,  Esq.,  which  he  afterwards  said  was  "  the  ren- 
dezvous of  the  village,  where  its  discussion  and  news- 
gossip  and  excitements  were  all  carried  on." 

It  would  seem  that  this  must  have  been  a  most  unfavor- 


46  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

able  place  for  the  young  student,  whose  mind,  as  yet 
undisciplined  by  habits  of  close  application,  would  be 
almost  inevitably  distracted,  and  effectually  hindered  from 
study,  by  the  hubbub  around  him.  It  is  remarkable  in  his 
mental  characteristics,  that  he  was  able  almost  at  once  to 
conquer  these  disadvantages,  and  to  fix  his  attention  upon 
his  reading  with  a  closeness  that  isolated  him  from  the 
groups  in  the  office  as  entirely  as  if  he  had  been  in  another 
room.  He  saj^s  of  himself  that  he  "  never  engaged  in  con- 
versation, or  even  heard  it,  unless  personally  addressed/' 
and  adds,  "  I  have  read  hundreds  of  pages  entirely  uncon- 
scious of  the  brisk  conversation  carried  on  in  my  hearing." 

This  almost  spontaneous  faculty  of  abstraction,  and 
equally  the  power  of  mental  concentration,  were  in  part 
the  product  of  his  simple  earnestness  of  purpose.  He  was 
at  work  with  a  will ;  and  from  the  beginning  to  the  com- 
pletion of  the  preparatory  labor  of  his  profession,  he  was  a 
close,  hard  student. 

His  letters,  during  his  student-life  in  Lanesboro',  were 
addressed,  chiefly,  perhaps,  to  his  brother  Rums,  until  his 
death  in  1816,  and  then  he  transferred  his  correspondence 
to  his  widowed  sister-in-law,  and  became  her  adviser,  her 
sympathizing  and  faithful  and  affectionate  friend. 

Some  of  his  letters  to  his  brother  would  afford  interest- 
ing paragraphs  for  these  pages,  as  unfolding  the  spirit  and 
temper  and  modest  self-confidence  of  the  youth,  while  yet 
acknowledging  his  constant  dependence  upon  his  brother's 
generosity.     On  one  occasion  he  writes  thus  :  — 

"Dear  Brother: 

"  You  have  the  most  sincere  effusions  of  my  grateful  heart  for 
your  earnest  solicitude  for  my  well  being  and  prosperity,  and 
especially  for  my  progress  in  legal  pursuits I  am  fully 


HIS  LAXESBORO*  LIFE.  ATi 

convinced  that  without  unremitted  application  to  books,  there  can 
be  no  proficiency  made  in  study,  and  that  without  a  sincere  attach- 
ment to  virtue,  no  man  can  be  happy.  So  beneficent  has  the  Cre- 
ator been  to  his  creatures,  that  the  instance  is  rarely  to  be  found, 
perhaps,  of  a  man  not  possessed  of  an  ability  for  improvement, 
md  even  proficiency,  in  any  science  to  which  he  will  give  his 
attention Perfection  is  what  I  have  no  idea  of  attain- 
ing while  shackled  with  human  nature ;  but  consistency  is  that 
after  which  I  am  resolved  to  reach.  Candor  shall  be  my  bosom 
companion ;  justice  shall  be  my  guide ;  and  nobly  to  fill  the  sphere 
in  which  I  move  shall  be  the  great  end  and  aim  of  my  labor." 

These  just  and  lofty  sentiments  were  no  mere  rhetorical 
utterances.  They  were  the  reflections  of  his  soul,  of  his 
conscience.  The  germ  of  a  grandly  useful  life  was  spring- 
ing up  with  a  beautiful  vigor,  unchecked  by  the  circum- 
stances, unchilled  by  the  atmosphere  around  him,  although 
these  were  of  a  far  less  encouraging  sort  than  most  young 
men  would  have  pined  for. 

He  did,  indeed,  find  sympathy  and  congenial  associations 
in  his  Lanesboro'  life.  He  boarded  much,  perhaps  most 
of  the  time,  in  the  family  of  a  truly  excellent  physician, 
Dr.  W.  H.  Tyler,  whose  subsequent  personal  and  profes- 
sional relations  to  him  and  his  family  were  intimate  and 
most  felicitous. 

In  one  of  his  letters  to  his  brother  Eufus,  his  ignorance 
of  Latin  is  the  theme  of  a  touching  plaint,  and  of  a  no  less 
touching  plea,  that  he  should  be  approved  in  his  desire  and 
plan  for  obtaining  a  knowledge  of  it.     He  says,  —     . 

"  I  find  my  situation  similar  to  that  of  a  man  ignorant  of  the  art 
of  reading,  who  should  attempt  to  travel  through  a  strange  region 
by  the  direction  of  guide-boards.  He  would  have  no  dhnculty  in 
finding  the  boards.  He  would  clearly  see  the  index  and  inscrip- 
tion ;  but,  unable  to  read,  he  would  not  be  in  the  least  benefited 


48  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

by  his  silent  guides.  The  ancient  law  books  abound  with  Latin, 
and  to  these  the  modern  authors  refer ;  our  maxims  are  wholly  in 
that  language.  I  feel  very  deeply  my  need  of  some  knowledge 
of  it." 

In  a  later  letter  to  his  brother,  this  Latin  question  is 
thus  satisfactorily  disposed  of:  — 

"As  it  seems  to  be  your  opinion,  that  if  I  study  Latin,  I  had 
better  get  into  some  priest's  family,  and  as  I  could  find  no  suitable 
one,  I  had  concluded,  considering  the  additional  expense  it  wouU 
make,  and  the  deduction  of  time  from  my  law  studies,  I  would 
renounce  the  idea.  But,  as  we  have  a  very  good  school  here,  and 
Mr.  Washburn  says,  on  reflection,  it  is  optional  with  the  judges, 
whether  to  admit  or  reject  the  time,1  and  he  thinks,  under  the 
circumstances,  they  will  allow  to  me  the  time  I  devote  to  Latin. 
I  shall  therefore  commence  immediately." 

The  satisfaction  of  the  rightly  ambitious  youth  in  this 
termination  of  his  doubts,  will  be  shared  by  the  reader  of 
these  reminiscences. 

In  the  same  letter  which  dismisses  the  Latin  problem, 
the  writer  appears,  also,  in  the  important  department  of 
finance.     He  writes,  — 

"  The  doctor  says  he  is  not  anxious  for  the  avails  of  my  board 
until  fall ;  but  I  think,  if  convenient  for  you,  the  amount  might  be 
paid  before  it  rises  to  any  considerable  sum.  If  you  have  a  little 
loose  cash,  it  would  be  welcome  to  me  at  the  present  time  to 
receive  a  few  dollars,  as  I  shall  need  a  new  book  or  two.  What 
you  gave  me  when  I  was  at  S.,  has  found  holes  in  my  pocket,  and 
has  gone  the  way  of  all  —  money.  Some  for  cravats,  some  for 
pocket-handkerchiefs,  some  for  books,  some  for  maps,  some  for 
sandals,  some  for  a  head-cover,  some  for  travelling  fees,  and  some, 

iThat  is,  whether  to  count  time  given  to  Latin  as  a  part  of  the  necessary 
time  given  to  law  study,  or  otherwise. 


REVIVAL  IX  LAXESBORO'.  49 

when  the  cold,  wan  hand  of  want  has  asked  for  a  pittance,  has 
freely  dropped  into  it.  And,  further,  as  it  is  my  province  to  ask,  I 
am  fast  approaching  a  shirtless  condition.  I  wish  you  would  write 
soon,  and  tell  me  how  I  am  to  replenish.  Conscience  says,  '  Stop 
now.'    Be  patient,  my  dear  brother." 

In  this  catalogue  of  expenditures  there  is  nothing  super- 
fluous. We  smile  at  its  frugality,  and  rejoice  at  the  beauti- 
ful gleam  of  charity  which  irradiates  the  cloud  of  poverty 
lying  behind  the  picture.  In  later  days  that  gleam 
brightened  into  a  steady  glow  —  a  perpetual  radiance,  in 
the  light  and  warmth  and  tenderness  of  which  man}r  heavy 
hearts  were  made  buoyant,  many  tears  were  transmuted 
into  smiles,  many  sighs  were  translated  into  thanksgivings. 

In  1816,  his  kind  and  faithful  brother  Rufus  died,  and 
the  prop  upon  which  he  leaned  for  his  narrow  income  was 
almost  suddenly  withdrawn  from  him.  In  this  emergency, 
he  found  help  in  his  own  hands,  and  earned  some  means  by 
copying  wills,  deeds,  and  other  documents  in  the  office 
where  he  studied,  and  which  was  also  the  office  of  the  Regis- 
trar. •  During  a  brief  part  of  the  year  he  taught  in  one  of 
the  town  district  schools,  and  filled  his  temporary  office  as 
pedagogue  with  credit. 

Early  in  1817,  a  remarkable  work  of  Divine  grace  mani- 
fested itself  in  Lanesboro'.  The  place  had  not  been  thus 
specially  visited  since  its  settlement,  although  during  all  the 
time  there  had  been  a  minister  settled  there.  The  people 
were  moral,  but  irreligious.  For  some  months  religious 
conference  meetings  had  been  held,  by  a  few  professing 
Christians,  without  exciting  any  special  interest.  In 
March,  it  was  evident  that  an  increased  solemnity  existed 
in  the  congregations,  which  became  large   and  crowded. 


50  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

Many  were  convicted  of  sin,  and  numerous  hopeful  con- 
versions gladdened  the  hearts  of  God's  people. 

At  this  time  there  was,  as  there  had  always  been,  only 
one  minister  in  the  village.  This  was  Rev.  Mr.  Collins, 
whose  long  control  of  the  spiritual  interests  and  of  the 
theological  opinions  of  the  place  had  made  him  somewhat 
dogmatic,  perhaps,  in  his  manner,  and  certainly  did  not 
incline  him  to  be  tolerant  of  the  Baptists,  "  a  sect  every- 
where spoken  against "  in  that  region.  So  dominant  was 
he  in  the  religious  matters  of  the  borough  that  few,  if  an}', 
ever  ventured  to  dispute  with  him.  He  was  not,  it  may 
be  reasonably  supposed,  inclined  to  look  at  first  with  favor 
upon  the  little  band  of  baptized  believers,  whose  practice 
was  a  silent  denial  of  Jus. 

It  happened  upon  one  occasion  that  a  conversation  took 
place  in  the  law  office,  in  which  Mr.  Collins  betrayed  a 
serious  misapprehension  of  the  faith  and  tenets  of  the 
Baptists.  With  great  simplicity  and  modesty  of  manner, 
the  student  answered  him,  and  made  a  clear  statement 
of  Baptist  views.  A  prolonged  discussion  followed,  in 
which  the  young  man  did  not  forget  for  a  moment  the 
respect  due  to  the  character  and  position  of  his  opponent, 
but  at  the  same  time  abated  nothing  of  his  characteristic 
sincerity  and  zeal,  as  he  defended  the  church  he  loved. 

To  the  great  credit  of  his  Christian  temper,  Mr.  Col- 
lins, after  his  first  surprise  and  vexation  were  past,  treated 
the  young  disputant  as  his  friend,  and,  ever  afterwards, 
they  co-operated  with  cordiality  and  mutual  regard  in  all 
good  words  and  works.  Whatever  reproach  upon  the  Bap- 
tist name  lingered  in  the  hearts  of  men,  it  never  grieved 
the  ear  of  their  staunch  young  advocate  while  yet  he  lived 
in  Lanesboro'. 


RESULTS   OF  THE  REVIVAL.  51 

These  facts  are  gleaned  from  a  long  letter,  written  to 
his  young  sister,  in  which  he  appeals  earnestly  to  her  own 
conscience. 

In  September  of  the  same  year  he  writes  to  her  in  grate- 
ful response  to  the  tidings  which  had  reached  him,  of  her 
conversion  and  baptism.  His  letter  is  full  of  affectionate 
and  judicious  counsel,  given  with  much  frankness,  but  with 
equal  modesty. 

"  We,"  he  says,  "  who  take  upon  us  the  name  of  Christians,  pro- 
fess to  renounce  the  vanities  of  the  world.  The  delusive  paths  of 
youth  are  to  be  avoided,  and  we  should  live  and  act  as  though  we 
were  living  for  heaven.  On  this  point  it  ill  becomes  me  to  admon- 
ish you,  for  my  way  since  I  loved  the  Saviour  has  been  a  dark  and 
devious  one.    Yet  I  continue  to  hope  in  Him." 

In  this  revival  the  young  law-student  labored  with  all 
the  gentle  enthusiasm  of  his  nature,  under  the  influence 
and  restraint  of  grace.  His  appeals  and  exhortations  were 
always  fervent,  and  frequently  of  visible  effect.  He  was 
at  this  period  the  warm  friend  and  loving  co-laborer  of  a 
young  Baptist  preacher  —  the  Rev.  Augustus  Beech  —  who 
was  settled  in  the  village  as  a  teacher.  This  friendship 
was  perpetuated  into  the  mature  life  of  the  young  men. 

Among  the  blessed  results  of  the  revival  referred  to,  was 
the  formation  of  a  Baptist  church  in'  Lanesboro',  in  the 
year  1817.  Only  twelve  members  were  gathered  into  its 
communion  at  the  time  of  its  constitution,  and  of  these 
twelve  one  was  a  gay  young  girl,  who  subsequently  became 
the  loving  wife  of  George's  youth,  and  who  is  now  the 
honored  widow  of  the  good  man  gone  to  his  rich  reward, 
and  the  beloved  mother  of  reverent  children. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

COMMONPLACE-TRUTHS  VIVIFIED  — A  STRIKING  CAREER  — INFLUENCE  OF 
EARLY  FRIENDS  — HENRY  SHAW— LETTER  TO  MRS.  SHAW  —  DEATH  OF 
HIS  MOTHER  —  LETTERS  FROM  MR.  SHAW. 

:OLERIDGE  somewhere  says,  "To  restore  a  com- 
monplace-truth to  its  first  uncommon  lustre,  you 

K§3  need  only  translate  it  into  action."  There  may 
never  have  been  any  "uncommon  lustre"  in  such 
an  immemorial  truth  as  that  of  the  homely  Eng- 
lish adage,  "  Where  there's  a  will,  there's  a  TY&y."  But 
the  logic  of  the  philosopher  applies  to  it,  nevertheless. 
"We  discover  very  little  force  in  the  hackneyed  and  worn- 
out  phrase.  It  has  lost  its  primal  sharpness,  and  lies,  in 
our  memory,  a  dead  letter.  But  let  it  be  once  and  again 
translated  into  action,  and  the  dull  truth  instantly  glows 
with  meaning,  not  perhaps  new,  but  newly  burnished, 
attractive,  and  impressive.  The  proverb  in  speech,  and  its 
truth  interpreted  by  deed,  appear  quite  different  things, 
however  really  the  same. 

The  youth,  who  rose  from  the  drudgery  of  the  hatter's 
shop  to  the  dignit}^  of  the  magisterial  bench ;  who  ad- 
vanced resolutety,  step  b}r  step,  from  a  precarious  pupilage 
in  a  village  law  office  to  the  power  of  the  judicial  ermine  ; 
who  climbed  out  of  the  obscurity  of  humble  birth  and  bur- 
densome poverty  to  the  shining  eminence  of  the  national 
council  halls ;  who  translated  a  childhood  almost  unprivi- 
leged  from   the  ineagreness  of  its  opportunities,    into    a 

52 


COMMOX-PLACE  TRUTHS   VIVIFIED.  53 

manhood  of  broad  and  beneficent  influence ;  —  the  youth 
who  accomplished  such  results  as  these,  thus  translating 
his  resolute  will  into  steps  and  progress  and  attainments 
and  achievements  that  compel  our  admiration,  has  undoubt- 
edly- glorified  with  an  "  uncommon  lustre"  a  commonplace- 
truth.  And  not  one  such  truth  only,  but  yet  another,  less 
homely  in  its  expression  because  it  is  embellished  with  the 
drapery  of  the  poet,  — 

"  Honor  and  shame  from  no  condition  rise ; 
Act  well  your  part,  — there  all  the  honor  lies." 

The  career  and  character  of  George  Nixon  Briggs  give  to 
such  precepts  as  these  the  force  and  fervor  of  principles,  of 
potency  enough  to  inspire  mighty  purposes  and  lofty  aims 
in  souls  struggling  beneath  a  mountain-load  of  discourage- 
ments and  disasters. 

There  is  really  nothing  extraordinary  in  his  case,  except 
his  singleness  and  steadiness  of  purpose.  His  abilities 
were  not  exceptional,  nor  was  his  application  excessive. 
In  respect  to  the.  former,  he  has  thousands  of  peers  amid 
the  rising  generation  of  this  day,  and  in  the  latter  virtue, 
it  would  not  be  difficult  for  any  one  -of  them  all  to  match 
the  noble  example  he  has  set.  His  is  no  impossible  excel- 
lence ;  his  whole  career  no  phenomenon  to  be  wondered  at, 
but  rather  to  be  nobly  and  broadly  emulated. 

In  estimating  the  forces  which  combined  to  shape  his 
character,  the  friendships  he  enjoyed  are  of  no  secondary 
value.  His  life  in  Lanesboro'  was  strongly  influenced  by 
others,  with  whom  he  was  closely  bound  in  mutual  regard. 

Of  these,  two  have  been  incidentally  named  —  the  worthy 
physician  whose  house  was  his  home,  and  the  young  Bap- 
tist preacher,  with  whom  he  was  leagued  in  a  warm  Chris- 


54  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE   X.  BRIGGS. 

tian  affection,  and  in  labors  that  made  them  both  unselfish 
in  the  exact  ratio  of  their  earnestness  and  measure. 

There  was  yet  another  friendship  vouchsafed  to  him  in 
those  early  days,  the  strongest  of  them  all  in  its  force, 
and,  unquestionably,  that  which  most  powerfully  influenced 
his  mind  and  affected  his  after  life.  It  was  the  friendship 
of  Henry  Shaw,  a  man  remarkable  even  among  remarkable 
men.  He  was  a  gentleman  of  wealth  and  commanding 
social  position  in  Lanesboro',  but  was  far  less  indebted  to 
these  conditions  than  to  his  intellectual  pre-eminence  for 
the  power  he  exercised  in  the  community,  and  to  which, 
especially,  the  young  student  of  law  rendered  enthusiastic 
homage. 

The  disparity  of  their  ages,  and  indeed  of  all  their  per- 
sonal surroundings,  made  the  beginning  of  their  intercourse 
an  affair  of  generous  courtesy  on  the  part  of  the  elder. 
He  sought  the  young  man  in  his  office,  and  won  his  regard 
most  effectually  by  counsel,  which  was  as  judicious  in  the 
way  it  was  given  as  it  was  excellent  in  itself.  To  advice, 
made  sweet  by  sjTnpathy,  he  added  the  offer  of  help  in 
obtaining  a  library  for  the  embryo  barrister. 

When  he  had  secured  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  the 
3^outh,  Mr.  Shaw  so  kindly  and  wisely  veiled  the  disparity 
of  their  circumstances  from  him,  that  the  friendship  became 
rather  that  of  equality  than  of  patronage.  Its  mutual 
force  grew  fast,  and  ripened  into  a  degree  of  strength,  and 
even  tenderness,  which  makes  it  one  of  the  most  luminous 
points  in  the  life  here  contemplated. 

To  pass  it  by  with  a  mere  allusion  would  be  an  injustice 
done  rather  to  the  subject  of  this  biography  than  to  Henry 
Shaw,  whose  name  was  early  inscribed  upon  the  heart  of 
his  Mend,  and  remained  legible  till  the  tablet  crumbled 


LETTER   TO  MRS.   SHAW.  55 

into  dust.  The  actual  records  of  their  friendship  are  only 
fragmentary  —  the  remains  of  active  and  long-continued 
correspondence  ;  but  such  vivid  recollections  of  it  linger  in 
the  hearts  of  those  to  whom  this  Memoir  is  to  supply  the 
place  of  husband  and  father,  that  it  would  seem  to  them 
defective  without  clear  reflections  of  him  who  was  faithful 
to  that  husband  and  father  in  affection  and  service,  in  word 
and  in  deed. 

Twenty-six  years  after  this  beautiful  friendship  germi- 
nated in  the  little  law  office  in  Lanesboro',  and  when  the 
young  devotee  of  Blackstone  was  in  the  political  metropolis 
of  the  land,  no  longer  a  law-student,  nor  even  a  law- 
expounder,  but  a  law-maker  for  the  nation,  he  wrote  to  the 
wife  of  his  early  and  constant  friend,  what  he  had  been  all 
along  desiring,  but  hesitating  to  say  to  his  friend  himself. 
There  is  no  fitter  place  for  this  tribute  than  here,  just  in 
advance  of  the  letters  which  well  reflect  the  man  to  whom 
it  is  so  delicately  paid.  It  was  written  during  his  sixth 
and  last  term  in  Congress  :  — 

Washington,  Jan.  3d,  1843. 
Dear  Madam: 

I  have  your  kind  letter  of  Dec.  25th,  and  am  glad  to  know  you 
prize  the  little  picture  of  Mr.  Adams,  with  his  autograph,  which  I 
sent  you  last  summer.  A  double  motive  induced  me  to  send  it.  I 
thought  you  would  be  pleased  with  what  I  considered  a  good  like- 
ness; and,  then,  I  intended  it  as  a  memento  of  regard  to  one 
whom  I  have  been  happy  to  consider  my  friend  from  the  days 
when  I  was  a  poor  and  stranger-youth,  in  the  old  "Boro',"  up  to 
this  time. 

Twenty-six  years  ago,  you  kindly  presented  to  me  two  volumes 
of  Mr.  Adams's  lectures  on  rhetoric.  Then  I  did  not  dream  I 
should  ever  have  the  opportunity  of  sending  you  his  likeness,  or 
any  other  acknowledgment  from  this  city.    That  token  of  your 


56  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.  ERIGGS. 

good  wishes,  which  was  esteemed  by  me  on  account  of  the  feel- 
ings which  dictated  it,  more  highly  than  rubies,  though  it  has  not 
been  talked  about,  was  recorded  on  the  tablet  of  a  grateful  heart, 
and  it  will  be  remembered  till  that  heart  shall  cease  to  beat. 
None  but  a  young  man,  struggling  against  the  billows  of  embar- 
rassment and  poverty,  could  know  how  to  estimate  such  an 
expression  of  friendship.  It  is  the  time,  circumstances,  and  man- 
ner, which  make  its  value.  Nor  was  it  from  you,  alone,  that  I  early 
heard  the  voice  of  encouragement  and  hope.  For  more  than  a 
quarter  of  a  century  your  husband  has  been  my  friend.  He  was 
the  first  person  who  suggested  to  me  that  I  should  ever  be  where 
I  am  now.  I  am  sure,  I  then  deemed  it  among  the  most  improb- 
able of  all  events.  Here,  my  dear  madam,  I  hope  you  will  not 
think  it  improper  for  me  to  say  to  you  what  I  have  often  said  to 
others,  though  not  to  your  husband,  — that  he  has  shown  me  more 
acts  of  friendship  than  any  other  man.  Not  to  acknowledge  such 
favors,  would  be  unjust  to  their  author;  not  to  feel  them,  would 
make  their  recipient  an  ingrate.  I  have  often  wished  to  say  this 
to  him.  But  the  apprehension  that  he  might  look  upon  it  as  affec- 
tation, or  mere  profession  (which  I  know  he  detests),  has  deterred 
me  from  it. 

In  an  hour  of  gloom,  when  on  a  bed  of  sickness,  I  told  my  little 
family,  if  I  went  down  to  the  grave,  to  remember  that  their  hus- 
band and  father,  through  every  vicissitude  of  his  life  from  youth 
till  that  time,  had  at  least  one  true,  one  fast  friend,  and  that  friend 
was  Henry  Shaw.  The  pleasing,  grateful  recollection  of  that  fact 
will  go  with  me  to  the  tomb.  The  fact  cannot  be  changed.  I  am 
glad  of  this  fitting  opportunity  to  speak  of  it  to  you ;  and  I  speak 
of  it  more  freely  because  I  feel  there  is  no  motiv#  but  a  right  one 
that  prompts  me  to  do  it.  In  leaving  Lanesboro',  where  the  most 
interesting  portion  of  my  life  has  been  spent,  these,  with  a  thousand 
other  affecting  emotions,  rushed  upon  my  mind.  I  wished  for 
some  proper  occasion  to  express  them  to  you  and  to  Mr.  Shaw, 
but  it  did  not  offer  itself.  Perhaps  the  long-existing  intimate 
relations  between  us  made  it  my  duty  to  have  done  so.  It  was 
not  from  disinclination,  but  for  want  of  opportunity,  that  it  was 
not  done.     The  people  of  that  town  have  treated  me  as  a  brother. 


LETTER  FROM  HENRY  SHAW.  57 

If  any  breast  there  harbors  feelings  of  enmity  towards  me,  such  a 

feeling  finds  no  response  in  my  bosom.     God  bless  the  good  old 

Boro,'  with  all  and  every  one  of  her  children.     They  have  dealt 

kindly  and  truly  with  me.     Her  rich  valleys  and  verdant  hills  will 

long  be  cherished  objects  of  my  memory.     I  love  her  beautiful 

scenery,  and  dwell,  with  delight,  upon  the  recollection  of  the 

enchanting  prospects  from  her  mountain-tops.     Her  quiet  and 

marbled  graveyards  are  dear  to  me.     There  repose  the  aged  ones 

I  venerated,  the  middle-aged  I  respected,  the  youth  I  admired,  and 

the  little  ones  I  loved.    There  they  will  sleep  till  the  resurrection 

morning. 

With  the  best  wishes  for  the  happiness  of  yourself  and  family, 

and  with  great  esteem, 

I  am  your  friend, 

George  N.  Briggs. 

Only  a  few  years  elapsed,  after  George  left  his  father's 
home,  before  his  mother  sunk  rapidly  under  the  burdens  of 
life,  and  died  —  died  before  the  happy  anticipations  in  her 
fond  heart,  of  her  boy's  success  in  life,  had  received  more 
than  the  first  gleams  of  fulfilment.  On  the  occasion  of  her 
death,  Mr.  Shaw,  then  in  "Washington,  from  which  place  he 
so  often  afterwards  addressed  his  friend,  wrote  thus  to  him 
at  Lanesboro' :  — 

Capitol  Hell,  Jan.  18,  1818. 
Dear  George: 

Laura  informed  me  only  yesterday  of  your  irreparable  loss,  In 
the  death  of  your  mother.  I  do  most  sincerely  mingle  my  tears 
with  yours ;  but  though  to  me  a  loss  like  yours  would  be  the 
greatest  of  afflictions,  to  you  it  must  be  otherwise,  for  you  are 
sustained  by  the  consolations  of  that  religion  which  gives  hope 
and  peace.  The  mind  that  has  some  stay  to  rest  upon,  permanent 
and  indestructible,  looks  with  comparative  unconcern  upon  the 
waywardness  of  fortune  and  the  ravages  of  death.  This  is  your 
happiness.  I  am  every  night  a  believer;  and  every  morning  make 
haste  to  sin.    Be  consoled  by  the  reflection  that  the  change  in 


58  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

your  mother's  condition  is  probably  to  her  advantage ;  and  suffer 
your  grief  to  be  lessened  by  your  friend's  participation. 

Yours,  faithfully, 

Henry. 

Probably  the  intimation  to  which  there  is  allusion  in  the 
letter  to  Mrs.  Shaw  had  not,  at  this  time,  been  made  to  the 
young  student,  or  if  it  had,  the  dream  of  becoming  a  mem- 
ber of  Congress,  and  of  mingling  in  the  scenes  and  with 
the  personages  described  in  his  friend's  letters,  had  hardly 
possessed  his  imagination.  Yet  such  a  description  as  the 
following,  of  Clay's  impassioned  eloquence,  must  have 
stirred  his  soul :  — 

Capitol,  Jan.  21,  1818. 
Deah  George: 

"We  are  in  the  midst  of  the  debate  on  the  Seminole  war.     H 

has  made  a  speech  that  I  presume  will  be  read  with  applause,  but 
you  can  scarcely  imagine  how  disgusting  his  manner  is.  He  was 
barely  tolerated.  Clay,  yesterday,  opened  the  flood-gates  of  the  most 
powerful  and  captivating  eloquence.  His  manner  is  without  par- 
allel. The  whole  house  was  held,  for  two  hours,  with  breathless 
interest.  The  tears  fell  not  alone  from  the  eye  of  beauty,  but 
chased  each  other  down  the  cheeks  of  many  a  hard-faced  veteran. 
Yet  I  presume,  after  all,  the  former l  will  read  the  best.  So  much 
is  manner  to  be  regarded  in  an  orator.  Stud}*  to  make  yourself 
master  of  this  art.  Language  is  something,  but  manner  is  every- 
thing. I  will  send  you  the  debate.  Let  me  have  letters  from  you, 
often  and  long.    Remember  me  to  all  my  friends. 

Yours,  with  sincerity, 

H.  Shaw. 

The  admirable  sketch  in  the  subjoined  letter,  of  one  of 
the  ablest  members  Virginia  had  ever  sent  to  the  House  of 
"Representatives,  is  a  good  example,  perhaps,  of  Mr.  Shaw's 

1 H 's  speech,  just  before  referred  to. 


LETTER  FROM  HENRY  SHAW.  59 

fine  power  both  of  discrimination  and  description.  In  har- 
mony with  his  estimate  of  Judge  Barbour's  intellectual 
force,  is  that  of  his  illustrious  friend  and  associate,  Judge 
Story,  who  said  of  him  that  "  he  was  not  only  equal  to  all 
the  functions  of  his  high  station,  but  above  them  — par 
negotiis  et  supra." 

Washington,  Jan.  24,  1818. 
Dear  George: 

I  told  you  something  about  Henry  Clay.    He  is 

not  however,  in  my  judgment,  the  ablest  man  in  the  House. 
Philip  P.  Barbour,  of  Virginia,1  is  about  the  average  height,  very 
spare  in  person,  has  a  keen,  penetrating  e}re,  and  a  sort  of  violence 
in  his  whole  countenance,  which,  while  it  indicates  strong  pas- 
sions, warns  you  that  his  head  is  the  habitation  of  genius.  In 
debate  he  is  all  on  fire,  and  lights  up  in  his  hearers  a  corresponding 
blaze.  His  action  is  vehement,  irregular,  and  of  course  ungrace- 
ful. His  voice  is  shrill,  and  gives  you  pain  rather  than  delight. 
His  mind  flashes  upon  a  subject  with  the  vivacity  of  lightning,  and 
leaves  it  surrounded  with  the  light  of  the  noonday  sun.  He  is, 
beyond  comparison,  the  most  logical  reasoner  in  the  House ;  and, 
perhaps,  is  not  surpassed  by  any  in  the  nation.  His  language  is 
pure,  figurative,  and  flows  with  the  rapidity  and  fulness  of  a  moun- 
tain torrent. 

Add  to  this,  that  all  the  members  respect  him,  and  consider 

him  an  honest  man,  and  a  sound  constitutional  politician.     He  is 

very  plain  in  his  appearance  and  manners,  without  ostentation. 

Considering  his    age,   which  is   only  thirty-five  years,   and  the 

power  of  his  intellect,  I  should  not  be  surprised  to  see  him,  at  no 

distant  day,  filling  some  distinguished   station  in  the  country's 

service 

Yours,  ever, 

H.  Shaw. 

The  next  letter  was  written  after  he  had   given  his  vote 

1  Appointed  by  President  Jackson,  in  1829,  Judge  of  the  Circuit  Court  for  the 
United  States  for  the  Eastern  District  of  Virginia. 


60  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

in  the  House  for  the  admission  of  Missouri  with  her  slave 
constitution,  —  a  vote  which  gave  general  dissatisfaction  to 
his  constituents,  and  involved  him  in  no  little  censure  both 
public  and  private.  Unwelcome  as  this  course  was  to  his 
}Toung  friend,  the  latter  was  persistent  in  the  opinion,  and 
no  less  in  the  expression  of  it,  that  it  was  the  result  of  Mr. 
Shaw's  inflexible  convictions  of  duty.  He  said  frequently 
to  Mr.  Shaw's  political  opponents  :  "  Shaw  was  honest  in 
that  vote.  He  knew  it  might  ruin  him  politically  ;  but  he 
did  it  nevertheless,  because  he  thought  it  was*  right."  It 
is  not  improbable  that  this  letter  compelled  this  positive 
testimony ;  though  it  could  scarcely  have  been  needed  to 
convince  the  young  student  of  the  conscientiousness  of  his 
admired  friend  in  his  course,  in  an  act  and  upon  an  occa- 
sion of  such  magnitude.  Because  he  would  have  desired, 
if  living,  to  give  Mr.  Shaw's  memory  everywhere  all  the 
vindication  for  his  vote  which  conscientious  convictions  in 
casting  it  could  carry  with  them,  this  letter  is  here  asso- 
ciated with  his  commemoration  in  these  Memoirs. 

Capitol,  Dec.  24,  1819. 
Dear  George: 

I  have  this  moment  received  your  letter.  It  breathes  the  spirit 
of  friendship.  You  ought  to  be  my  friend ;  not  because  I  have 
contributed  to  advance  your  interest,  but  because  from  principle, 
alone,  I  have  wished  to  do  it.  In  my  nature  there  is  no  disguise. 
The  world  will  always  see  the  worst  side  of  me,  because  it  is  the 
outside. 

I  have  written  to  you  once,  and  have  said  but  little  on  a  subject 
that  lies  with  weight  on  my  mind.  I  refrain  from  saying  much  to 
any  of  my  friends  on  the  Missoun  Question,  for  fear,  as  my  popu- 
larity rests  in  some  degree  upon  it,  I  may  be  suspected  of  sinister 
views.  Before  God,  I  have  on  this  question  nothing  but  the  good 
of  my  country,  as  I  understand  it,  at  heart. 


HEXRY  SHAW'S  LETTERS.  61 

"To  you  I  may  speak  with  assurance,  but  what  I  say,  let  it  be  in 
confidence.  I  will  not  condescend  to  defend  my  motives  to  any 
man  when  called  upon  at  a  time  and  on  a  question  like  the  present, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  I  know  those  motives  are  and  will  be  im- 
peached. I  am  firmly  persuaded  that  this  question  will,  if  persisted 
in,  have  two  effects :  the  first  will  be  to  reinstate  Federalism  in 
power;  the  second,  and  most  frightful  one,  will  be  the  separation 
of  the  States 

"  Poicer  is  the  real  aim  of  the  men  who  are  agitating  this  ques- 
tion with  so  much  zeal.  I  hope  they  will  be  defeated;  but  the 
excitement  which  prevails  here  is  prodigious,  and  the  Southern 
people  have  no  pledge,  if  the  question  be  settled  against  Missouri, 
except  the  forbearance  of  party,  that  all  the  slaves  might  not 
be  emancipated!  Most  unfortunate  are  those  who  are  honestly, 
and  from  principles  of  supposed  humanity,  leading  the  country 
into  this  unprofitable  discussion ;  most  criminal  are  those  who  are 
doing  it  from  design.  Now  I  leave  it  to  its  course.  I  am  willing 
to  be  tried  by  it.  I  might  hope  that  the  judgment  of  the  commu- 
nity might  be  stayed  till  after  the  discussion  in  Congress.  There 
is  too  much  at  stake  to  be  in  haste." 

Here  follow  some  extracts  only,  from  sundry  letters  of 
the  frequent  correspondence  with  which  Mr.  Shaw  fresh- 
ened and  stimulated  the  mind  of  his  young  favorite,  still 
hammering  away  at  Coke  and  Littleton  :  — 

"Randolph!  I  must  reserve  him  for  description  by  word  of 
mouth.  He  is,  George,  the  most  extraordinary  man  living;  the 
most  bewitching  and  correct  speaker.  He  is  in  fine  health,  and 
seems  not  to  have  lost  any  of  his  genius,  though  I  suspect  his  fire 
is  a  little  mellowed. 

"Pinckney  is  making  one  of  the  most  eloquent  and  argumenta- 
tive speeches  ever  delivered  in  any  deliberative  body.  He  began 
on  Friday,  will  continue  on  Monday,  and  probably  finish  on  Tues- 
day. He  is  the  most  astonishing  man,  uniting  almost  all  the  qual- 
ities of  greatness  with  the  most  contemptible  vanity.  He  is  at  the 
same  time  the  prince  of  eloquence  and  dandies,  his  ambition  bal- 

6 


62  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

ancing  itself  between  the  desire  of  eclipsing  the  first  orators  of  the 
world,  and  surpassing  in  extravagance  the  greatest  fop !  Clay  will 
try  to  outdo  him,  and  he  has  the  advantage  in  voice  and  manner." 

Of  much  later  date  than  the  letters  quoted,  is  that  from 
which  the  following  extracts  are  made.  In  1828,  when  Mr. 
Shaw  was  in  the  State  Legislature,  he,  without  any  knowl- 
edge on  the  part  of  his  young  friend,  urged  his  name  upon 
Governor  Lincoln  in  connection  with  the  office  of  District 
Attorney.     In  allusion  to  this,  he  writes  from  Boston  :  — 

Dear  George : 

I  have  taken  the  liberty  of  presenting  your  name  to  his  Excel- 
lency for  the  post  of  District  Attorney.  I  have  no  hopes  of  suc- 
cess, but  thought  it  would  do  you  no  harm  to  have  your  name 
offered  for  consideration.  I  presented  it  in  a  proud  manner,  and 
placed  it  entirely  on  the  ground  that  the  public  good  would  be  for- 
warded by  the  appointment.  I  did  not  beg  as  a  favor  that  which  I 
told  his  Excellency  would  reflect  credit  on  his  administration. 

We  have  been  three  days  on  the  Salem  Theatre  bill.    It  is  a 

contest  between  the  moral  and  religious  part,  and  the  liberal  and 

spirit-of-the-stage  folks.     I  am  of  course  found  here,  where  I  am  at 

home,  on  the  side  of  piety  and  good  morals,  and  ice  shall  beat  them. 

Be  diligent,  be  popular,  and  hereafter  thou  shalt  come  to  great  honor. 

I  salute  you  all. 

H.  Shaw. 

Further  glimpses  of  the  intercourse  of  these  devoted 
friends  will  appear  as  the  biography  proceeds.  Mr.  Shaw 
never  remitted  his  earnest  kindness  to  him  whom  he  sought 
when  a  stranger  and  almost  friendless.  When  he  was  sick 
and  for  a  long  time  confined  to  his  chamber,  he  was  with 
him  daily,  ministering  to  his  needs,  soothing  him  hy  acts 
of  loving  s}Tmpathy,  and  cheering  him  by  smiles  and  words, 
making  of  his  mere  presence,  indeed,  sunshine  and  balm  to 
the  sufferer. 


CHAPTER    V. 

ADMITTED  TO  THE  BAR —  HIS  MARRIAGE  —  GLIMPSES  OF  WEDDED  LIFE  — 
STRUGGLE  WITH  POVERTY  —  SETTLES  IX  HIS  NATIVE  VILLAGE  —  TOO 
POOR  FOR  OFFICE  —  A  PEACE-MAKING  LAWYER  — HIS  HOSPITALITY  AND 
GENEROSITY — SABBATH  BOUNTY  —  REPUTATION  AT  THE  BAR  —  TRIBUTE 
OF  AN  ASSOCIATE. 

X  the  autumn  of  1818,  the  first  eager  ambition  of  the 
3'oung  and  persistent  student,  and  the  playful  vatici- 
nation of  his  mother,  were  realized  together,  in  his 
admission  to  the  bar.  He  was  now  a  law3Ter,  and  his 
career  and  success  in  this  profession  demand  a  chap- 
ter or  two  of  these  memoirs  for  their  record.  The  mother 
—  who  so  fondly  and  proudly  called  him,  in  his  childhood, 
her  "  little  lawyer"  —  was  not  living  to  rejoice  in  the  con- 
summation of  his  hopes :  inspired,  it  may  be,  by  her  own 
familiar  epithet. 

But  while  her  happy  congratulations  were  lacking  to  cel- 
ebrate the  event  of  his  accession  to  the  bar,  those  of 

"  a  nearer  one 
Yet,  and  a  dearer  one," 

made  up  in  no  small  measure  for  their  loss.  A  few  months 
earlier  he  had  been  united  in  marriage  with  Harriet  Hall, 
the  only  daughter  of  Ezra  and  Triphena  Hall,  of  Lanes- 
boro'.  Beyond  the  qualifications  of  a  fair  and  happy  girl- 
hood, vivacity  of  mind  and  manner,  and  an  amiable  temper, 
his  young  wife  was  in  perfect  sympathy  with  him  in  his 

63 


64  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

earnest  and  demonstrative  religious  character.      She  was 

likely,  therefore,  to  be  a  helpmeet  to  him  in  all  his  prog- 
ress ;  and  this,  indeed,  she  proved  to  be,  —  surviving  him 
to  mourn,  though  submissively,  a  bereavement  in  which  the 
sources  and  the  chief  ends  of  her  own  life-inspiration  were 
at  once  exhausted. 

That  his  marriage  was  a  happy  one,  his  whole  domestic 
life  bears  witness.  Through  more  than  forty  }~ears  it 
poured  sunshine  on  his  daily  paths,  which  no  shadows  of 
misfortune  or  sorrow  could  obscure.  The  veil  which  hangs 
before  the  domestic  shrine  must  not  be  rudely  torn  aside, 
though  every  glimpse  we  could  obtain  behind  it,  in  the 
home  of  the  lawyer,  the  statesman,  the  philanthropist,  the 
judge,  the  parent,  the  Christian,  whose  life  is  the  noble 
theme  of  our  contemplation,  would  reveal  only  the  beauty 
and  harmony  of  wedded  hearts.  If  the  young  lawyer  de- 
lighted in  his  fair  companion,  when  she  was  in  the  freshness 
of  her  bloom,  that  delight  certainly  knew  no  abatement  in 
any  after  period,  although  its  immediate  sources  must  have 
undergone  successive  changes.  She  was  his  good  genius, 
and  by  her  ready  resources,  her  vigilant  care,  her  admirable 
tact  and  sound  judgment,  ever  embellished  his  home  and 
strengthened  his  heart. 

The  following  tender  expression  of  his  sense  of  obliga- 
tion to  her  was  fitly  made  to  one  of  his  children,  and  is 
perhaps  only  not  too  sacred  for  public  repetition  :  — 

"  Your  mother  loved  me  when  I  was  poor  and  young,  and  to  her 
true  and  constant  affection,  her  watchful  carefulness  and  economy, 
her  wakeful  and  delicate  smypathy,  I  owe  all  I  have  or  am." 

Her  widowhood  is  hallowed  into  a  serene  beauty  by  her 
memories  of  his  life.     These  sweeten  its  natural  bitterness, 


STRUGGLES   WITH  POVERTY.  65 

brighten  its  unavoidable  gloom,  and  throng  its  loneliness 
with  visions  of  delight.  More  than  this,  they  interpret 
themselves,  by  the  power  of  a  divine  faith,  into  anticipa- 
tions of  renewed  fellowship  with  him  who  is,  to  her  ex- 
pectant heart,  — 

"  Not  lost,  but  gone  before." 

Here  let  the  veil,  drawn  aside  hesitantly,  drop  to  its 
place  over  the  sacred  wealth  of  wedded  and  domestic  peace 
and  bliss,  of  which  glimpses  only  are  so  beautiful  and 
affluent. 

The  two  years  immediately  preceding  the  3~oung  law 
student's  admission  to  the  courts  had  been  a  period  of 
struggles  with  poverty,  —  less  severe,  perhaps,  than  other 
conflicts  with  the  same  adversary  which  have  yet  been 
crowned  with  victory,  —  but  sharp  enough  to  be  depressing 
to  any  but  a  resolute  soul.  He  bore  himself  well  in  the 
battle,  and  achieved  his  end. 

But  the  strife  did  not  end  with  his  first  success  in  it. 
His  early  professional  career  was  not  a  realization  of  bright 
dreams  of  plenty  of  cases,  and  fame  and  fortune  coming  in 
like  a  flood.  The  young  lawyer  had  yet  "  to  labor  and  to 
wait."  His  purse  was  slender,  and  seldom  full  at  the  best. 
His  daughter  recalls  one  of  his  playful  reminiscences  of 
those  trying  times,  when  he  made,  as  he  described  it,  "  a 
pedestrian  excursion  over  the  hills,  in  order  to  borrow  a 
horse,  that  I  might  ride  ten  miles  to  pay  five  dollars  of 
borrowed  money." 

When  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  he  took  his  3'oung 
wife  to  his  native  village,  and  there  •he  opened  an  office. 
Here,  the  majestic  beauty  of  Greylock1  rose  up  continually 

IThe  highest  mountain  in  Berkshire,  at  the  foot  of  which  nestles  the  little 
town  of  South  Adams. 
6* 


GG  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

before  him,  inspiring  his  heart  and  mind  alike  with  lofty 
ambitions.  His  deep  admiration  of  that  noble  hill,  and, 
indeed,  of  all  the  beautiful  and  impressive  scenery  of  Berk- 
shire, found  repeated  expression  in  his  conversation  and 
in  his  correspondence.  The  loveliness  of  nature  and  the 
diviner  beaut}r  of  grace  wove  each  its  spell  about  his  heart, 
and  his  reverent  spirit  always  made  perfect  harmony  of 
their  influences  and  teachings. 

His  poverty  proved,  at  a  very  early  period  of  his  life,  a 
bar  to  his  public  advancement.  His  native  village  received 
him  with  welcome  and  respect,  upon  his  return  to  dwell 
there.  His  character,  his  intelligence,  his  probityr,  were  all 
recognized,  and  as  a  tribute  to  them,  his  name  was  suggested 
in  a  village  caucus  held  for  the  nomination  of  a  Representa- 
tive in  the  Legislature.  By  the  single,  but  effective  oppo- 
sition of  a  political  leader  present,  who  based  his  objection 
to  the  nomination  on  the  ground  that  "George  owned  no 
propert}',"  the  3'oung  man  missed  an  early  seat  in  the 
council-chamber  of  the  Commonwealth. 

It  was  well  for  him  that  he  did  so.  He  aroused  himself 
afresh  to  the  work  of  his  profession.  His  attention  to  it, 
his  candor  and  ingenuousness  and  good  nature,  secured  him 
friends.  Business  came  to  his  hands  —  not  in  magnificent 
measures,  but  still  enough  to  jdeld  him  a  support,  and  to 
enabled  him  to  furnish  and  keep  a  little  green  cottage,  over 
which  Greylock  was  the  grand  old  warden. 

The  gentleness  and  peaceableness  of  his  nature,  moulded 
early,  and  always  strongly  controlled  by  his  piety,  seemed 
likely,  in  the  beginnuag  of  his  practice,  to  have  an  untoward 
influence  upon  his  fortunes.  He  was  not  one  who  "  stirreth 
up  strife,"  but,  on  the  contraiy,  he  adopted  for  his  motto 
the  Apostolic  precept:   "As  much  as  lieth  in  j'ou,  live 


A  PEACE-MAKING  LAWYER.  G7 

peaceably  with  all  men."  What  he  practised  he  taught, 
and  practice  in  this  direction  did  not  tend  to  increase  his 
practice  in  another  direction.  It  is  currently  reported  of 
him,  that  he  always  received  his  clients  with  persuasions  to 
them  to  avoid  the  law,  telling  them  they  had  better  settle 
the  matter  among  themselves,  and  that  the  lawyers  would 
make  the  most  out  of  the  case,  and  "  skin  "  them. 

If  he  could  prevail  upon  any  one,  coming  to  him  with  a 
deep  sense  of  his  supposed  injury,  and  eager  for  legal  re- 
dress, to  look  at  the  other  side  of  the  case,  and  incline  to 
a  quiet  adjustment  of  it,  he  always  rejoiced  in  such  a  result, 
and  even  offered  to  persuade  the  lawyer,  retained  on  the 
other  side,  to  give  up  the  case  to  private  settlement. 

This  course  did  not  seem  the  wisest  to  all,  as  it  did  to 
himself.  His  father-in-law,  being  on  a  visit  to  him,  went 
much  into  his  office,  and,  seeing  one  of  these  illegal  settle- 
ments effected,  proceeded  to  the  house,  and  exclaimed,  with 
considerable  feeling,  — 

"  Really,  Harriet,  I  am  sure  George  will  never  make  a 
living  by  his  profession.  Why,  he  seeks  to  persuade  every 
one  to  keep  out  of  court." 

The  perverseness  of  human  nature  and  the  implacable- 
ness  of  many  minds  often  defeated,  however,  the  good-will 
and  peace-making  efforts  of  the  Christian  lawyer.  He  tried 
the  causes  he  could  not  hinder  from  coming  to  the  issue  of 
the  law,  and  these  were  numerous. 

Experience  did  not  make  him  more  flexible  in  this  re- 
spect. Through  all  his  legal  practice,  he  carried  out  the 
wise  man's  philosophy  of  "  letting  alone  strife  before  it  is 
meddled  with,"  and  probably  he  did  not  try  half  the  cases 
he  mioht  have  conducted  before  the  bar,  if  he  had  taken  all 
the  fish  tha+  came  to  his  net. 


68  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

It  is  related  of  him  that,  in  the  last  year  of  his  life,  his 
professional  advice  was  sought  by  a  very  sensible  and  prac- 
tical citizen,  who  thus  approached  him,  — 

"  Governor.  I  am  excessively  perplexed  in  the  settlement 
of  an  estate  of  which  I  am  administrator.  I  am  afraid  I 
shall  be  greatly  embarrassed  by  the  technicalities  of  the 
law.  and  make  irreat  blunders." 

"  Look  here.  D.."  returned  the  Governor,  "  in  two  minutes 
I  can  tell  you  how  to  be  a  o-ood  lawyer  —  as  <rood  a  lawyer 
as  anybody.  Just  look  over  your  case  carefully;  uncle;- 
stand  it.  and  then  do  what  you  think  is  right,  and,  in  nine 
cases  out  of  ten,  you  will  have  the  law  on  your  side." 

The  broadest  review,  as  well  as  the  narrowest  glimpse  of 
his  life  as  a  lawyer,  would  constrain  the  acknowledgment 
from  the  observer  that  he  won  the  beatitude  of  the  peace- 
makers. 

Allusion  has  been  already  made  to  his  generous  hospi- 
tality in  his  home.  Besides  his  nephews,  who  were  with 
him  for  years,  the  parents  of  his  wife  came,  in  their  age 
and  pecuniary  misfortune,  to  the  happy  and  ungrudged 
shelter  of  his  abode.  The  mother-in-law  was,  much  of  the 
time,  a  confirmed  invalid,  but  never  felt  the  want  of  unwea- 
ried care  and  kindness.  After  a  second  marriage  she  was 
again  widowed,  and  was  entitled  to  a  portion  of  her  hus- 
band's estate,  which  would  have  afforded  her  a  handsome 
income.  But  as  her  union  with  her  second  husband  was 
short,  and  formed  late  in  life,  she  was  persuaded  by  her 
son-in-law,  on  whom,  without  the  property,  she  must  be 
dependent,  to  relinquish  all  claim  to  it,  and  become  again  ' 
an  inmate  of  his  house  and  a  sharer  in  all  his  possessions. 

His  was  a  generous  heart  and  an  open  house.  Especially 
was  this  true  in  the  experience  of  travelling  ministers,  who, 


SABBATH  HOSPITALITY.  09 

before  the  era  of  railroads,  always  went  in  their  own  vehi- 
cles. To  them  he  extended,  as  it  was  facetiously  said  of 
him,  "both  hospitality  and  /torsepitalit}-."  The  families 
of  these  perambulating  clergymen  were  often  guests  at  his 
table  for  days,  and  sometimes  for  weeks.  "Every  agent's 
horse,"  -testihes  one  who  knew,  "  seemed  to  know,  by 
instinct,  where  Mr.  Briggs  lived." 

So  serious,  at  times,  were  the  encroachments  upon  his 
fireside,  on  the  Sabbath  and  in  the  intervals  of  public  wor- 
ship, by  distant  comers,  that  there  was  literally  no  chance 
for  his  children  to  get  near  it.  His  kitchen  was  thronged 
by  the  colored  people,  who  were  as  welcome  as  those  who 
crowded  the  parlor  and  the  chambers. 

These  broad  Sabbath  courtesies  and  bounties,  were  ex- 
tended to  the  members  of  both  of  the  village  congregations, 
without  distinction.  His  was  not  merely  a  "  House  Beau- 
'tiful"  for  his  Baptist  friends,  but  for  the  Congregationalists, 
also.  His  practice  was  to  have  a  bountiful  lunch  prepared 
for  them  on  the  previous  day,  that  there  might  be  no  Sab- 
bath work  in  his  dwelling,  and  thus  the  commandment  be 
honored. 

It  was  scarcely  probable  that  a  lawyer,  who  dissuaded 
clients  from  paying  him  fees,  and  a  Christian  philanthropist 
who  kept  open  house  for  neighbors  and  strangers ;  who 
supported,  with  generous  bounty,  dependent  relatives  ;  and 
who  fed  the  hungry,  clothed  the  naked,  and  soothed  the 
sons  of  sorrow  in  their  lowly  homes,  —  should  grow  rich. 
He  did  not.  Great  possessions  never  hindered  his  progress 
heavenward.  The  treasures  he  carried  thither  were  hearts 
he  had  gladdened  and  comforted  and  helped. 

His  reputation  at  the  bar  was  achieved  almost  upon  a 
single  memorable  occasion.     An  Indian  was  charged  with 


70  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

murder,  and,  when  the  trial  came  on,  the  Judge  appointed 
Mr.  Briggs  as  his  counsel.  Fully  convinced,  by  a  careful 
examination  of  the  case,  that  the  accusation  was  unjust  and 
the  prisoner  innocent,  he  entered,  with  all  the  ardor  of  his 
soul,  into  the  cause,  and  left  nothing  undone  that  he  could 
honorably  do  to  secure  the  acquittal  of  the  unhappy  man. 
In  the  management  of  this  somewhat  peculiar  case  he 
developed  powers  and  tact  surprising  to  his  friends,  and 
scarcely  familiar  to  himself.  His  argument  was  logical 
and  powerful,  and  his  plea  truly  a  model  of  jury  eloquence 
The  impression  produced  upon  the  court  and  audience  was 
profound,  and  the  report  of  the  case  was  speedily  spread 
throughout  the  count}',  echoing  from  hill  to  hill,  and  the 
fame  of  the  rising  lawyer  from  dwelling  to  dwelling. 

It  is  a  curious  illustration  of  the  fallibility  of  human 
judgment  and  of  the  uncertainty  of  law,  that,  in  spite  of 
all  his  counsel's  eloquence  and  zeal,  the  poor  Indian  was 
proved  guilty,  and  suffered  the  penalty  of  death. 

An  associate  of  Mr.  Briggs  sa}*s  of  his  law  life  :  — 

"  He  rose  rapidly  in  his  profession,  and  soon  stood,  as  a  jury 
lawyer,  at  the  head  of  the  bar  in  his  native  county ;  the  eloquence 
and  power  of  the  young  advocate  being,  in  all  that  region,  admired 
and  applauded." 

In  a  long  night  conversation  with  one  of  his  sons,  late 
in  life,  he  narrated  the  incidents  and  details  of  causes  he 
had  managed  and  argued  in  the  early  part  of  his  profes- 
sional life,  pitted  against  such  able  men  as  Senators  Mills 
and  Bates,  out  of  his  own  county.  Among  other  things, 
he  said  that,  from  his  earliest  case  to  his  last,  he  never 
commenced  the  trial  of  a  cause  without  an  effort,  and  a 
mental  struggle,  to  subdue  his  own  self-distrust  and  dim*- 


AT  THE  BAR.  71 

dence,  and  that  his  power  over  juries  and  his  frequent  suc- 
cess was  always  a  matter  of  surprise  to  himself. 

At  a  later  period  in  life  he  was  engaged  in  a  capital  trial 
in  his  own  county,  which  he  managed  with  marked  success. 
The  case  involved  the  life  and  reputation  of  an  individual 
above  the  ordinary  class  of  criminals.  It  was  one  that 
excited  great  interest,  and  called  forth  his  full  strength. 
One,  who  was  present,  relates  the  magical  effect  of  his  elo- 
quence, evinced  by  the  hushed  silence,  the  thrill,  and  the 
awe  of  the  crowded  room.  Many  in  the  jury  box  and  in 
the  audience  wept,  and  many  faces  became  pale  with  emo- 
tion. His  argument,  illustrations,  and  appeals  seemed  to 
have  carried  his  hearers  with  him  ;  and  in  the  closing  sen- 
tences, delivered  almost  in  a  whisper,  he  seemed  to  be 
uttering  their  thoughts  and  feelings,  as  well  as  his  own. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

HI3  CHARACTER  AND  CAREER    AT    THE    BAR  —  SKETCH    BY  HON.    INCREASE 
SUMNER  — TRIBUTE    FROM    DR.    TYLER. 

F  the  numerous  tributes  to  the  ability  and  fidelity, 
and  no  less  to  the  singleness  of  aim,  which  charac- 
terized the  subject  of  this  Memoir,  in  the  succes- 
sive phases  of  his  life  and  career,  kindly  supplied, 
for  the  use  of  the  biographer,  by  the  memoiy  and 
hand  of  admiring  friends,  there  are  two  which  have  such 
particular  reference  to  his  early  manhood  and  to  his  legal 
practice,  that,  although  they  glance  at  later  epochs  of  his 
life,  they  find  their  most  appropriate  setting  in  juxtaposi- 
tion with  the  chapter  which  presents  him  to  our  notice  at 
the  bar.  The  prominence  and  enviable  distinction  which 
marked  him  as  a  lawyer,  in  his  office,  in  the  courts,  and 
especially  before  the  jury,  are  not  a  little  remarkable,  when 
the  disadvantages  under  which  he  struggled  upwards  to  that 
position  are  considered.  The  circumstances  and  acces- 
sories of  that  fortunate  struggle  are  graphically  pictured 
in  a  sketch  from  the  pen  of  the  Hon.  Increase  Sumner.  In 
showing  us  the  condition  of  the  bar,  and  of  the  community 
contemporary  with  the  young  lawyer's  entrance  into  legal 
life,  and  his  rapid  elevation  to  the  summit  of  his  profession, 
he  prepares  us  to  make  an  intelligent  and  just  estimate  of 
the  forces  at  work,  and  of  the  credit  won,  in  the  achieve- 
ment so  proudly  and  yet  so  humbly  wrought. 

This  consideration  avails  with  the  biographer  to  withhold 


SKETCH  BY  SUMXER.  73 

his  own  hand  for  considerable  space,  and  to  present  the 
tribute  now  referred  to  without  abridgment :  — 

"  When  Got.  Briggs  came  to  the  bar,  a  state  of  things,  in  regard 
to  business  and  practice,  prevailed  differing  from  what  exists  now. 
Since  1818  chrnges  have  been  wrought  considerably  affecting,  in 
Western  Massachusetts,  the  legal  profession. 

"Berkshire  was  then  mostly  an  agricultural  county,  having  only 
a  single  banking  institution;  and  manufacturing  was  limited  in 
amount.  Masses  of  business  always  involving  the  increase  of  liti- 
gation, did  not  then  exist.  Hence  the  practice  of  the  lawyer  was 
restricted  mainly  to  the  collection  of  debts,  drawing  of  written" 
instruments,  and  giving  such  advice  as  the  comparatively  few 
clients  required.  It  was  an  isolated  section  of  Massachusetts, 
containing  about  thirty-seven  thousand  inhabitants.  The  number 
of  practising  lawyers  was  about  forty.  Residing  in  different  towns, 
much  dispersed  from  each  other,  they  were  only  brought  together 
by  the  courts  at  five  sessions  a  year;  no  session  continuing,  ordi- 
narily, more  than  two  weeks.  It  was  the  custom  of  the  members 
of  the  bar  to  convene  at  the  shire-town  on  the  evening  or  day 
before  the  actual  sitting  of  the  court ;  and  in  respect  to  most  of 
them,  their  quarters,  for  many  years,  were  at  a  private  boarding- 
house,  —  comfortable,  pleasant,  — kept  by  the  late  Bradford  Whit- 
ing, Esq.  When  not  occupied  in  court  or  in  the  preparation  of 
their  causes,  they  thus  met  at  their  quarters,  incidentally,  as  it 
were,  — constituting  a  kind  of  social  professional  club.  The  facil- 
ities of  railroads  being  unknown,  and  all  public  conveyances 
limited,  convenience,  if  not  necessity,  compelled  them  to  remain  at 
court  till  the  term  ended.  This  state  of  things  produced  amongst 
the  brethren  of  the  profession  a  friendliness  of  feeling,  and  tended 
also  to  promote  an  interchange  of  sentiments  and  ideas,  adding  to 
the  intellectual  acquirements  of  each.  Legal  questions,  the  history 
of  the  times;  the  conduct,  lives,  and  merits  of  public  men; — in  a 
word,  all  the  variety  of  topics  appertaining  to  the  day,  were  sug- 
gested and  discussed. 

"  Hence  the  bar  formed  a  kind  of  unorganized  lyceum,  not  subject 
to  precise  system  or  rules,  but  with  all  its  proprieties  and  advan- 
7 


74  -  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE   X.    BRIGGS. 

tages.  Many  of  the  senior  members  had  mingled  in  association 
with  such  men  as  Caleb  Strong,  Theodore  Sedgwick,  Daniel 
Dewey,  Ephraim  Williams,  and  others  of  honorable  professional 
fame  in  Western  Massachusetts.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  of  the 
Berkshire  bar  in  1818  and  onward,  that,  for  intellect  and  elevation 
of  individual  and  professional  character,  it  was  highly  respectable. 
One  cause  of  this  was  found,  perhaps,  in  the  fact  that  the  rules  for 
admission  were  very  exacting,  requiring  of  those  liberally  educated 
three  years  of  faithful  study;  and  of  those  not  thus  educated,  five 
years  in  the  office,  and  under  the  guidance  of  a  counsellor-at-law, 
before  they  could  be  admitted  to  the  Common  Pleas ;  a  restriction 
of  some  years'  practice  in  that  court  before  admission  to  the  Su- 
preme Judicial  Court ;  and  in  the  latter,  a  practice  of  two  years  as 
attorneys,  before  attaining  the  degree  of  cousellor,  a  still  further 
advancement  requisite  before  they  were  allowed  to  argue  or 
conduct  a  trial  of  a  cause  in  the  latter  court.  It  was  on  the  whole, 
perhaps,  a  pupilage  too  exacting,  though  a  process  of  thorough 
training. 

"  An  incident  in  regard  to  Mr.  Briggs,  in  this  connection,  may 
be  given.  On  the  day  of  his  admission  as  attorney  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  and  directly  after  his  taking  the  oath,  he  united  with  his 
senior  associate  counsel,  the  late  William  C.  Jarvis,  in  the  trial  of 
one  of  his  causes,  and  began  introducing  his  evidence.  The  Chief 
Justice,  who  presided,  inquired  who  was  interrogating  the  witness. 
1  It  is  Mr.  Briggs,'  replied  Mr.  J.,  'just  admitted  as  an  attorney  of 
this  court.'  '  He  is  not  a  counsellor,'  was  the  stern  response  of  the 
judge,  '  and  cannot  be  permitted  to  examine  witnesses ; '  doubtless 
little  dreaming  that  the  attorney  thus  repulsed  would,  in  due  time, 
be  elevated  to  the  Chief  Magistracy  of  the  Commonwealth,  with 
the  power  of  nominating  the  chief  officers  of  the  Judiciary. 

"  He  was  not  learned  in  the  books ;  yet  he  was  a  well-educated 
lawyer.  There  are  more  methods  than  one  of  acquiring  legal 
knowledge.  Cases  in  which  he  was  employed  he  thoroughly  and 
faithfully  examined  and  understood,  not  only  as  to  the  facts,  but 
the  law,  evidence  of  which  is  shown  in  his  cases  that  are  reported. 
It  was  his  habit,  while  attending  court,  always  to  listen  to  the  trial 
cf  cases,  and  to  all  legal  questions  which  arose,  whether  he  was 


SKETCH  BY  SUMNER.  70 

engaged  in  the  suits  or  not ;  and  his  good  memory  retained  facts, 
points,  and  decisions,  with  tenacity  and  exactness.  This  habit, 
connected  with  his  clear  judgment,  contributed  greatly  towards 
making  him  a  good  lawyer. 

"  His  manner  of  examining  witnesses  was  excellent.  He  loved 
truth,  and  loved  its  development,  for  its  own  sake.  No  honest 
witness  ever  received  from  him  rudeness.  He  never  attempted  to 
prevail,  in  a  poor  cause,  by  seeking  to  entrap  or  by  assailing. 
Whenever  a  witness,  honest  but  mistaken,  gave  testimony,  in  a 
manner  alike  kind  and  adroit,  he  would  almost  invariably  succeed 
in  exposing,  in  gentle  and  playful  manner,  the  error,  by  the  lips  of 
the  witness,  generally  to  the  amusement  of  the  court  and  jury,  and 
frequently  of  the  witness  also.  On  the  other  hand,  if  he  confronted 
a  witness  apparently  perverse,  in  a  calm  and  serious  manner,  he 
probed  him  by  an  examination  which  almost  always  exposed  the 
perverseness. 

"  In  his  addresses  to  the  jury,  and  in  his  arguments  to  the  court, 
he  was  lucid  and  methodical,  seizing  upon  the  true  points,  not 
burdening  the  cause  by  introducing  such  as  were  weak  or  imma- 
terial ;  and  his  views  were  ever  presented  briefly,  seriously,  and 
impressively.  Fond  as  he  was  in  colloquy  of  relating  anecdotes, 
as  well  for  illustration  as  for  pleasantry,  he  wholly  abstained  from 
them  in  his  forensic  efforts.  He  was  grave,  candid,  earnest.  For 
fidelity  to  his  clients  he  was  most  exemplary,  and  it  was  a  fidelity 
not  based  upon  the  position  or  wealth  of  his  clients,  but  upon  a 
stern  sense  of  duty,  founded  upon  professional  obligation.  The 
poor  accused  one  in  the  criminal's  box,  friendless  and  penniless, 
would  be  aided  by  him  with  as  much  zeal  and  alacrity  as  though 
he  were  possessed  of  money  and  friends.  If  an  accused  outcast, 
forlorn  and  destitute,  came  under  his  notice,  and  if  he  deemed  him 
wrongly  prosecuted,  he  would  without  solicitation  tender  his  ser- 
vices, and  see  to  it  that  no  rigors  of  the  law  needlessly  harmed  the 
poor  victim. 

"  His  intercourse  with  his  professional  brethren  was  not  unlike 
an  entertainment,  where  profitable  sayings  and  pleasant  humor 
and  sweet  music  and  decorated  scenery  are  commingled.  He  took 
a  generous  interest  in  their  welfare ;  and  probably  not  one  survives 


7G  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.   BR1GGS. 

him  who  does  not  hold  in  precious  remembrance  many  instances 
of  his  valuable  friendship.  The  junior  members  he  always  ap- 
proached with  welcoming  embrace,  showing  his  kind  wishes  in 
acts  as  well  as  in  language.  Whenever  he  perceived  them,  as  often 
he  might,  embarrassed,  or  at  fault,  because  of  inexperience,  and  a 
suggestion  of  his  could  relieve  or  aid  them,  it  was  at  once  prof- 
fered, and  in  such  a  manner  as  real  kindness  always  dictates,  — 
especially  towards  those  who,  like  himself,  had  struggled  through 
disadvantages,  and,  by  dint  of  self-culture  and  unaided  application, 
forced  their  way  to  the  bar.  Congeniality  of  circumstances  in  his 
own  life,  with  that  of  others  of  his  own  profession,  ever  awakened 
within  him  sympathies  alike  strong  and  amiable. 

"  In  delineating  the  character  and  history  of  men  over  which 
plays  the  shadow  as  well  as  the  sunshine,  the  biographer  often 
finds  it  expedient  as  well  as  just  to  depict  both,  lest  he  should 
fall  under  the  imputation  of  partiality.  The  smallest  hair  casts  a 
shadow  ('  etiam  capillus  unus  habet  umbram  suam ').  But  he  whose 
tastes  lead  him  to  descry  such  shadows  must  be  better  pleased 
with  the  littleness  than  greatness,  more  gratified  in  perceiving  a 
speck  on  the  disk  of  a  flower  than  in  the  contemplation  of  its  sur- 
passing beauties.  Only  such  will  ever  seek  to  discover  a  shade 
upon  the  professional  or  other  fame  of  Gov.  Briggs. 

"  Comparing  him  with  others  of  his  profession,  no  one  seems  so 
truly  parallel  as  the  late  James  Sullivax.  Each,  in  early  life,  pur- 
posed to  pursue  a  different  calliug  from  the  law.  Neither  had  the 
advantages  afforded  in  the  higher  institutions  of  learning,  or  was 
trained  under  the  guidance  of  legal  sages.  Both  depended,  under 
the  favor  of  Providence,  upon  their  individual  exertions  for  ad- 
vancement ;  both  were  successful  and  distinguished  in  their  pro- 
fession; and  the  character  of  their  miuds,  in  regard  to  comprehen- 
siveness, order,  and  force,  was  similar.  Both  made  an  early 
profession  of  Christianity,  and  were  eminently  exemplary  in  the 
performance  of  its  duties  in  every  relation  of  life,  and  each,  for  his 
virtues  and  talents,  was  elevated  to  the  Chief  Magistracy  of  the 
Commonwealth. 

"  It  is  exceedingly  fortunate,  whenever  one  of  beneficent  life  and 
ennobling  example  enters  into  the  legal  circle,  for  it  cannot  be 


LETTER  FROM  DR.    TYLER.  11 

otherwise  than  that  a  strong  attachment  towards  him  should  be 
formed,  and  his  influence  ever  tends  to  elevate  and  purify  the 
minds  of  those  with  whom  he  associates. 

"  This  reflection,  applied  to  the  character  and  life  of  Gov.  Briggs, 
whether  as  a  lawyer,  a  citizen,  or  a  magistrate,  heightens  our 
regard  for  his  memory,  and  inspires  a  strong  desire  that  it  may  be 
preserved.  We,  who  had  companionship  with  him  and  loved  him 
so  well,  can  visit  his  grave  with  thoughtfulness,  not  sadness ;  for 
voices  seem  to  whisper,  '  Lo !  the  good  man  has  risen ! '  Pleasant 
remembrances  wrarm  our  hearts,  and  we  are  comforted!  " 

The  early  friendship  between  the  young  law  student  and 
Dr.  Wm.  H.  Tyler,  of  Lanesboro',  has  been  already  referred 
to  as  advancing  into  the  most  intimate  relations,  involv- 
ing both  personal  and  professional  confidence,  until  death 
severed  the  ties  that  bound  them  together. 

Soon  after  the  melancholy  tidings  of  the  death  of  his 
beloved  friend  reached  him,  he  wrote  to  his  son  the  follow- 
ing commemorative  letter,  with  which  this  chapter  and  the 
review  of  his  active  life  at  the  bar,  may  be  properly  brought 
to  a  close  :  — 

North  Adams,  Mar.  4,  1862. 
My  dear,  Sir: 

I  have  been  intimately  acquainted  with  your  father  for  forty- 
seven  years,  an  intimacy  that  I  count  among  the  best  things  of  my 
life.  He  commenced  the  study  of  law  with  Luther  Washburn, 
Esq.,  of  Lanesboro',  and  became  a  member  of  my  family  at  the 
same  time, — November,  1814, — being,  as  I  suppose,  seventeen  or 
eighteen  years  of  age.  He  was  a  very  sociable  and  companionable 
inmate  with  us  for  two  years,  during  which  time  he  was  a  remark- 
ably close  applicant  to  his  studies.  Nothing  diverted  his  atten- 
tion, unless,  sometimes,  a  law  question  came  up  among  the  social 
friends  who  visited  the  oflice.  He  then  would  exhibit  his  tact  and 
skill  for  argument.  His  natural  endowments  were  of  a  high  order ; 
his  mind  active  and  brilliant  —  intuitively  grasping  and  mastering 
7* 


78  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

any  subject  presented  to  his  contemplation.  He  obtained  acquaint- 
ances and  made  friends  with  remarkable  facility.  I  never  saw  or 
heard  of  his  being  angry ;  and,  being  always  cheerful  himself,  he  con- 
tributed much  to  the  cheerfulness  of  others.  His  vivacity  rendered 
his  friends  social  and  happy.  He  was  sometimes  merry ;  and  often 
related  anecdotes  and  incidents  in  such  a  fascinating  manner  as  to 
charm  and  interest  his  hearers ;  but  he  always  possessed  so  much 
prudence  and  gravity,  as  never  to  trespass  against  anything  sacred. 
He  had  a  better  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  than  any  man  of  his 
age  with  whom  I  was  acquainted ;  and  his  accuracy  in  quoting  Scrip- 
ture, I  have  had  opportunity  of  witnessing  several  times.  When 
other  lawyers  had  misquoted,  he  very  readily  and  happily  corrected 
them.  He  made  a  profession  of  religion  when  a  youth ;  and  per- 
haps I  have  been  more  interested  in  his  society  from  his  having 
embraced  sentiments  in  unison  with  my  own.  I  have  enjoyed  many 
happy  hours  with  him  in  social  religious  meetings.  His  brethren 
were  always  gratified  when  he  engaged  in  the  public  performance 
of  religious  duties.  You  are  aware  of  his  having  been  called  the 
Apostle  of  Temperance.  The  first  temperance  meeting  of  which  I 
ever  heard  in  Berkshire  County  or  elsewhere,  was  obtained  by 
him  at  a  public  house  in  the  north  part  of  Lanesboro',  I  think  in 
182-i  or  1825  (there  were  some  twelve  or  fifteen  persons  present). 
It  was  a  novel  afi'air.  A  constitution  was  formed,  but  as  our  obli- 
gations were  not  very  strict,  we  soon  formed  another. 

His  benevolence  showed  itself  in  daily  acts  of  quiet  kindness  to 
everybody  about  him ;  his  sympathy  and  well-timed  efforts  for  the 
benefit  of  the  sick  and  afflicted  in  his  neighborhood  and  elsewhere, 
exceeded  any  with  which  I  am  acquainted.  I  have  experienced 
much  of  his  kindness  in  my  own  family.  I  suffered  from  an  acci- 
dental injury  to  one  of  my  lower  limbs  for  more  than  two  years, 
and  then  had  to  undergo  amputation.  During  all  that  time  he 
would  often  visit  me,  cheerfully  relate  some  story  or  anecdote, 
and  perform  all  the  kind  and  consoling  duties,  so  well  known  and 
appreciated  by  those  who  are  suffering  on  a  sick-bed.  Those  per- 
sonal qualities  that  made  him  the  idol  of  his  friends,  gained  more 
and  more  upon  me  while  he  lived. 

As  a  lawyer  and  advocate,  I  have  known  but  few,  if  any,  above 


LETTER  FROM  DR.    TYLER.  79 

him.  A  few  years  since,  when  he  was  in  fall  practice  as  a  lawyer, 
it  was  often  said  he  made  the  best  argument  and  address  ever 
made  in  Lenox  Court  House.  Conversing  with  him,  at  one  time, 
with  regard  to  a  plea  of  great  power  and  success  which  he  had 
recently  made,  he  said  to  me,  that  "  for  more  than  an  hour  he  had 
no  consciousness  of  there  being  any  one  present  except  the  twelve 
men  who  constituted  the  jury." 

The  last  time  I  visited  his  family,  I  rode  with  him  to  the  Pitts- 
field  Cemetery.  On  our  arrival,  he  desired  me  to  get  out  of  the 
carriage,  and  to  step  on  the  ground  which  he  had  selected  as  the 
place  of  his  own  burial.  Our  conversation  on  this  occasion,  as 
also  in  many  of  our  later  interviews,  was  on  the  subject  of  our 
departure  from  this  world  to  another.  He  was  often  recurring  to 
the  friends  and  acquaintances  of  the  past,  and  recounting  those 
whom  death  had  called  away.  Language  would  fail  me  to  express 
my  high  admiration  of  his  great  social  and  Christian  virtues,  and 
my  deep  sorrow  and  anguish  at  our  irreparable  loss. 

Truly  yours, 

Wm.  H.  Tyler. 

George  P.  Briggs,  Esq. 


CHAPTER    VII. 


ELECTED  TO  CONGRESS  — HIS  CONGRESSIONAL  DISTRICT  AND  CONSTITU- 
ENTS—  ANTICIPATIONS  AND  AMBITIONS  —  JOURNEY  TO  WASHINGTON  — 
letter,  en  route—  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIS  FAMILY. 


-OR  twelve  years  Mr.  Briggs  steadily,  and  always 

successfully,  pursued  the  path,  his  progress  along 
which  we  have  just  reviewed  ;  gaining  all  the  time, 
in  greater  degrees,  the  confidence  and  regard  of 
his  neighbors.  The  distinctions  which  marked  this 
period  of  his  life,  were  chiefty  those  he  achieved  for  himself 
by  his  tact  and  his  fine  forensic  powers.  He  was  indeed 
chosen,  in  1824,  town  clerk  of  Lanesboro',  and  two  years 
later  he  received,  from  Gov.  Lincoln,  an  appointment  as 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Commissioners  on  Highways  for 
Berkshire  County. 

In  the  fall  of  1830,  his  popularity  found  a  demonstration 
in  the  voice  of  the  people,  by  his  election  as  a  member  of 
Congress  from  the  Eleventh  Congressional  District,  includ- 
ing, besides  the  County  of  Berkshire,  a  part  of  Hampshire 
County. 

The  whole  of  this  district  is  a  hill  region,  and  more  than 
a  generation  of  3rears  ago  it  was  somewhat  sparsely  inhab- 
ited by  a  people,  characterized  less  by  refinement  and  wealth 
than  by  the  steadiness  of  industrial  thrift.  They  were 
chiefly  farmers,  who  had  such  education  as  the  common 
school  supplied,  with   here  and   there  examples  of  mental 

culture,  which  served  to  give  force  to  the  aggregate  of  the 

so 


ELECTED   TO   CONGRESS.  81 

public  intelligence.     This  was  eminently  moral,  and  indeed 
of  an  exemplary  force  of  virtue. 

Their  excellent  Representative  in  the  National  Legisla- 
ture said  of  them,  in  after  years  i  "  I  doubt  if  one  among 
my  early  constituents  kept  a  carriage  in  the  proper  sense 
of  the  word  ;  and  yet  scarcely  one  was  without  a  vehicle  of 
some  kind  or  other." 

The  general  parity  of  social  condition  among  the  people, 
indicated  in  this  remark,  might  have  been  traced  in  other  direc- 
tions. They  were  of  simple  habits  and  tastes,  and  equally 
of  a  sincere  character  —  appreciating  moral  and  intellectual 
worth,  and  gladly  seizing  upon  these  in  rare  and  felicitous 
union,  in  the  character  of  him  to  whom  they  gave  their 
honest  and  hearty  suffrage  at  the  polls.  His  predecessors 
in  Congress  were,  perhaps  without  exception,  examples  of 
men  whose  remembrance  among  the  people  was  a  guaranty 
for  the  continued  prudence  and  wisdom  of  their  choice  in 
any  successor. 

Mr.  Briggs  was  thus  sent  to  Congress  at  a  very  impor- 
tant epoch  in  the  national  history.  Great  questions  were 
springing  up  out  of  the  agitations  and  conflicts  of  popular 
and  party  interests,  and  a  new  era  of  legislative  activity 
and  distinction  was  about  to  be  inaugurated  in  the  council 
halls  of  the  nation.  Hitherto  a  stranger  to  all  this  sort  of 
life,  except  as  he  read  of  it  in  the  few  newspapers  to  which 
he  had  access,  and  of  a  scarcely  broader  experience  than 
that  of  many  of  his  constituents,  the  }roung  lawyer  looked 
forward  to  his  new  position  with  mingled  emotions  of  am- 
bition and  apprehension.  It  was  not  possible  that  his 
active  and  earnest  and  independent  mind  and  nature  should 
be  unmoved  with  a  strange  delight,  at  the  prospect  of  fame 
thus  opening  before  him.     At  the  same  time  his  humble 


82  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGG8. 

and  conscientious  spirit  shrunk  with  ingenuous  apprehen- 
sion from  the  contemplation  of  a  sphere  of  action  so  new, 
so  strange,  so  remotely  linked,  up  to  this  time,  with  his 
personal  expectations,  and  so  exacting  in  its  requirements 
of  the  man  who  should  aspire  to  fill  it  worthily  and 
well. 

He  girded  himself  for  his  work,  however,  without  pro- 
founder  misgivings  than  those  which  befitted  a  strong,  but 
surprised  character,  and  armed  with  a  consciousness  of 
rectitude  in  his  motives  and  in  his  purpose  alike,  he  went 
manfully  and  hopefully  up  to  the  broad  and  distinguished 
theatre  —  where  the  grand  and  impressive  drama  of  National 
History  was  to  be  enacted,  with  himself  as  one  of  those  who 
were  to  bear  a  part  in  it. 

He  was  now  in  the  thirty-fifth  year  of  his  age,  and  in  one 
sense  well  prepared  for  the  new  arena  upon  which  he  was 
to  cope  with  great  minds  and  subtile  spirits.  He  was  self- 
disciplined  and  self-poised.  This  advantage  came  of  his 
independent  life-struggle.  He  did  not  go  to  Washington 
quite  as  unknown  as  many  do  who  are  heaved  up  unex- 
pectedly by  the  waves  of  political  strife,  and  precipitated, 
almost  as  unexpectedly  to  themselves  as  to  their  constitu- 
ents, upon  the  shore  of  public  office.  His  honest,  homely 
fame  went  in  advance  of  him.  His  prominence  at  the  bar 
and  his  probity  in  all  walks  of  life  were  known  out  of 
Berkshire,  and  generously  accredited  at  the  National 
Capitol,  so  that  when  he  modestly  apppeared  among 
his  colleagues  he  gratefully  found  himself  in  the  midst  of 
friends. 

Chosen  at  the  congressional  election  of  November,  1830, 
he  did  not  take  his  seat  until  the  beginning  of  the  next 
session  of  Congress  in  December,  1831.     While  in  Wash- 


JOURNEY  TO   CONGRESS.  83 

ington,  and  indeed  always  when  absent  from  his  home,  he 
was  a  constant  and  punctual  correspondent  with  his  family. 
His  warm  domestic  affections  were  never  chilled  by  the 
exciting  scenes  and  events  in  which  he  was  so  often  a  par- 
ticipant. This  almost  voluminous  correspondence  affords 
a  panorama  ol  his  life  as  a  statesman  —  and  will  be  drawn 
upon  freely  for  the  pictures  to  be  framed  into  this  Me- 
moir. 

"  His  first  journey  to  Washington,"  says  his  daughter,  "  was  com- 
menced in  the  midst  of  one  of  the  fiercest  of  the  New  England  snow- 
storms, which  proved  to  be  the  beginning  of  a  winter  of  snow  that 
continued  till  April ;  not  leaving  the  surface  of  the  ground  exposed 
again  for  six  months.  The  warm  and  covered  stage-sleigh  due  at  mid- 
day in  the  old  Boro',  on  the  route  over  the  mountains  from  Green- 
field to  Albany,  arrived  this  day  at  nightfall,  coming  through  the 
trackless  roads  in  a  lumber-box  open  sleigh.  How  well  I  remember 
the  dreary  evening,  and  see  again  with  childhood's  eyes  the  large 
black  trunk  in  the  rear  of  the  sleigh,  and  the  muffled  form  of  my 
father,  sitting  beside  the  driver,  as  they  disappeared  with  the 
plunging  horses  in  the  blinding  snow.  The  watchers  at  home 
had  heavy  hearts  that  night.  Washington  was  far  off  in  the 
vision  of  the  children,  and  the  storm  and  cold  were  fearful." 

His  first  letter  was  addressed  to  his  wife,  from  New 
York :  — 

New  York,  Sunday  evening,  27  Nov.,  1831. 
My  dear  Harriet  : 

We  had  rather  a  cold  time  of  it  after  we  left  Lanesboro'  until 
we  reached  Hancock,  when  the  weather  seemed  to  moderate,  and 
we  came  to  Troy  in  a  coach  on  wheels.  Between  Troy  and  Albany 
no  snow  was  to  be  seen,  except  on  distant  hills.  We  took  the 
steamboat  at  Albany  at  ten  o'clock,  yesterday,  and  arrived  at  New 
York  at  eleven  and  a  half,  and  stopped  at  the  ''Atlantic,"  in  Broad- 
way.   At  Albany,  ^we  fell  in  company  with  Judge  Prentice,  Senator 


84  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  2T.   BRIGGS. 

from  Vermont.  Judge  P.  is  a  very  sensible  and  agreeable  man. 
Being  very  much  of  a  domestic  man.  his  feelings  about  home  and 
leaving  his  family,  corresponded  with  my  own.  We  have  laughed 
some  about  backing  out  and  going  home,  but  concluded  that  we 
will  have  grit  enough  to  go  on  to  Washington  and  see  how  the 
land  lies,  before  we  entirely  give  up  the  chase  and  abandon  our 
trust.  I  am  in  good  health,  and  could  I  take  a  peep  into  the  old 
tabernacle  on  the  hill  in  the  Bora'  and  see  how  my  better  half,  the 
dear  children,  and  the  rest  of  the  family  are,  I  hope  I  should  see 
you  all  in  such  circumstances  that  all  my  anxieties  would  be 
quieted.  I  hope  for  the  best,  as  it  is  I  quietly  yield  myself  to  cir- 
cumstances. 

Have  been  to  church  all  day. 1 

Tell  all  the  dear  children  that  their  father  expects,  while  he  is 
absent,  they  will  be  kind,  affectionate,  obedient,  faithful  in  their 
studies,  and  good  children.  Mother  and  Alfred  and  Betty  and 
Sally  must  be  good  children,  too.  Tell  the  doctor  to  look  well  to 
his  charge,  and  cure  you  immediate! y.  I  shall  write  you  often.  In 
in  the  mean  time,  I  am 

Your  affectionate  husband, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 

He  had  not  been  in  Washington  more  than  a  fortnight 
when  he  found  leisure,  even  amid  the  novel  and  exacting 
engagements  into  which  he  was  plunged,  to  write  to  his 
daughter  a  letter  of  true  parental  affection  and  solicitude. 
His  anxiety  for  the  right  education  of  this  only  daughter, 
made  him  constantly  assiduous  in  his  care  and  watchfulness 
in  all  things  that  seemed  likely  to  influence  seriously  her 
mind  and  character.  The  affectionate  counsel  of  this  letter 
is  not  yet  out  of  date,  though  in  this  artificial  age,  and  in 
the  garish  light  of  modern  and  fashionable  female  educa- 
tion, it  seems  certainly  almost  as  homely  as  it  is  excellent. 

lit  was  only  just  before  the  previous  midnight  that  he  arrived  at  the  city. 


CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIS  FAMILY.  85 

Washington,  December  15,  1831. 
My  dear  Child  : 

I  was  pleased  to  receive  your  letter,  and  when  you  learn  that  by 
devoting,  occasionally,  a  few  leisure  minutes  to  an  absent  father 
you  can  contribute  to  his  pleasure,  I  have  no  doubt  you  will  find 
many  opportunities  to  do  the  same  thing.  It  gives  me  joy  to  learn 
from  you  your  determination  to  give  all  vigilance  to  your  studies. 
Let  not  the  good  resolution  drop.  A  thing  half  learned  confers  no 
benefit  on  the  learner. 

Eemember,  my  daughter,  that,  with  the  right  state  of  mind,  you 
may  gather  wisdom  from  everything  that  surrounds  you.  It  is 
not  from  those  persons  alone  whose  appropriate  business  it  is  to 
impart  instruction,  that  we  are  to  obtain  knowledge;  but  from 
everybody  and  everything  we  may  receive  instruction.  There  is 
nothing  in  the  great  field  of  knowledge  which  will  be  learned  in 
vain,  if  properly  improved,  whether  it  be  in  the  physical,  intellect- 
ual, or  moral  world.  Listen  to  the  words  and.receive  the  counsel 
of  age ;  it  is  the  voice  of  experience,  the  oracle  of  wisdom.  Ee- 
member, also,  that  one  way  of  benefiting  ourselves  is  to  impart 
of  our  stock  of  knowledge  to  others,  who  may  be  in  need  of  infor- 
mation which  we  possess  and  they  do  not.  Whilst  we  communicate 
to  them  we  mature  our  own  views,  and  learn  not  only  to  think  cor- 
rectly, but  to  communicate  aptly. 

Recollect,  that  things  you  have  learned  and  which  may  appear 
exceedingly  simple  and  plain  to  you,  may  yet  be  mysterious  to 
them.  Take  the  most  apt  and  agreeable  means,  then,  to  do  them 
a  kindness,  in  imparting  to  them  every  aid  in  your  power.  Learn 
never  to  be  too  confident  in  your  own  opinions,  nor  too  bold  in 
expressing  them ;  especially  in  the  presence  of  those  older  than  your- 
self. The  most  costly  jewels  and  the  richest  ornaments,  when  in- 
discreetly exhibited,  or  improperly  worn,  render  their  possessor  an 
object  of  disgust.  Finally,  my  child,  let  this  great  truth  be  ever 
present  to  your  mind,  that  the  highest  personal  accomplishments 
and  the  greatest  intellectual  achievements  will  eventually  avail 
nothing  if  they  are  not  connected  with,  or  do  not  flow  out  of,  a  pure 

and  virtuous  heart 

8 


86  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE   X.  BRIGGS. 

The  following  letter,  besides  bringing  up  a  picture  of 
court-life  in  Washington  of  a  past  generation,  will  remind 
the  reader  of  the  time  when  sketches  of  scenes  and  celeb- 
rities at  the  Capitol,  drawn  by  the  facile  pen  of  Mr.  Shaw, 
were  affording  the  poor  young  pupil  of  the  law  such  delight 
in  his  village  home  :  — 

"Washington,  20th  December,  1831. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

The  President  of  the  United  States,  from  long  established  usage, 
invites  the  members  of  Congress  to  cline  with  him,  once  or  more, 
during  the  session  of  Congress. 

Dinner  parties  consist  of  from  thirty  to  forty  members.  As  a 
matter  of  convenience,  the  names  of  all  the  members  are  arranged 
alphabetically,  and  so  beginning  with  the  first  letter  of  the  alpha- 
bet a  sufficient  number  are  selected  to  compose  the  usual  party. 
Being  high  among  the  letters  in  their  order,  I  had  the  honor  of 
being  detailed  for  the  first  dinner  party.  The  invitation  was  given 
and  accepted  last  week,  and  to-day  being  the  time  appointed,  after 
the  House  adjourned,  I  began  to  set  myself  in  order.  Now,  for 
the  first  time,  the  new  black  coat  and  pantaloons  were  brought  out 
and  put  on,  and  with  a  most  ministerial  air  I  marched  off  for  the 
President's,  in  company  with  Mr.  Bates,  of  Northampton,  and 
Messrs.  Barstow  and  Babcock  of  New  York.  Having  reached  the 
house,  we  were  ushered  into  the  presence  chamber  of  the  Presi- 
dent, where  we  found,  standing  in  a  room,  magnificently  furnished, 
the  "  old  chief"  with  about  thirty  guests  and  four  ladies  seated 
upon  a  sofa.  The  first  move  was  to  pay  our  respects  to  the  Presi- 
dent ;  shake  hands,  and  pass  the  usual  compliments,  and  then  be 
introduced  to  the  ladies. 

General  Jackson  is  a  man  apparently  more  than  seventy  years 
old,  very  thin  and  slender  in  person,  about  six  feet  high ;  his  face 
very  long  and  narrow ;  his  hair  combed  up  and  back,  so  that  it 
stands  erect  all  over  his  Iread,  and  is  about  three  inches  long.  He 
has,  for  an  old  man,  a  pleasant  blue  eye.  [  think:  though,  under  his 
spectacles,  I  could  not  precisely  determine  the  color.  His  manners 
are  easy  and  graceful  and  dignified.     His  movements  are  sprightly, 


CORRESPONDEXCE   WITH  HIS  FAMILY.  87 

though  they  have  not  the  firmness  and  vigor  of  a  man  in  the  full 
strength  of  life.  He  talks  freely  and  pleasantly  on  the  ordinary 
subjects  of  conversation  which  arise  in  a  mixed  company.  The 
lady  of  the  palace  is  a  Mrs.  Donaldson,  whose  husband,  I  believe, 
was  a  nephew  of  Mr.  Jackson.  She,  I  should  think,  is  about  thirty- 
five  years  old,  —  a  plain,  agreeable,  and  elegant  woman,  appears  free 
from  vanity,  and  does  not,  in  any  of  her  airs  or  manners,  indicate 
a  consciousness  that  she  is  a  court  lady. 

Mrs.  Jackson,  a  newly-married  wife  of  an  adopted  son  of  the 
General,  appears  next  in  rank,  and  is  very  pretty.  Then  there  was 
a  sister  of  Mrs.  Donaldson,  —  a  young  lady  of  a  fine  form,  with  a 
sensible  and  engaging  countenance,  and  most  unassuming  and 
agreeable  manners.  There  was  a  fourth  young  lady,  whose  name 
I  do  not  recollect.  The  modesty  of  demeanor,  and  modesty  of 
attire  of  all  these  ladies,  in  the  midst  of  the  showiness  of  the  man- 
sion of  the  chief  magistrate  of  the  United  States,  made  a  very  agree- 
able impression  on  me. 

At  six,  dinner  was  announced.  Were  I  to  attempt  to  describe 
the  table,  its  rich  and  splendid  service,  or  the  number  and  variety 
of  the  dishes,  I  should  fail.  Suffice  it  to  say,  after  sitting  an  hour 
and  a  half,  the  party  withdrew  into  the  room  we  had  left,  where 
coffee  was  served;  after  which  ceremony  the  company  took  leave. 

The  statesman,  amid  his  official  cares  and  responsibilities, 
—  which  his  habitual  conscientiousness  and  his  simple  self- 
respect  did  not  allow  to  sit  lightly  upon  him,  —  yet  forgot 
not  the  individuality  and  interest  of  one  of  the  dear  house- 
hold band  his  separation  from  whom  was  the  greatest  draw- 
back to  his  happiness  in  Washington.  In  proof  of  his  con- 
tinual and  particular  remembrance  of  the  children  who  were 
dear  to  him,  and  in  all  whose  concerns  he  was  accustomed 
when  at  home  to  take  a  lively  interest,  are  the  following 
letters,  written  during  his  first  month  in  Congress  :  — 

Washington,  December  24,  1831. 
Well,  my  dear  little  sons,  George  and  Henry,  it  is  now  Saturday 


88  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

night,  and  I  want  to  inquire  of  you  both  if  you  have  been  very  good 
boys  through  this  week?  What  have  you  been  studying,  and  how 
much  have  you  learned  ?  Have  you  let  any  of  the  scholars  outdo 
you  in  lessons  and  in  complying  with  the  rules  of  the  school  ?  Are 
you  dutiful  and  affectionate  to  your  mother,  respectful  and  kind  to 
your  good  grandmother?  Do  you  love  one  another  and  your  dear 
sister  ?  How  comes  on  that  beautiful  calf?  Do  you  take  good  care 
of  her  this  cold  weather?  I  want  to  have  you  write  me  every  Sat- 
urday night,  and  your  sister  every  Tuesday,  so  as  to  send  by 
Wednesday's  mail.  What  should  you  think  to  see  little  black  girls 
carrying  pails  of  water  on  their  heads?  The  black  women  carry 
tubs  of  water  on  their  heads,  from  the  pumps,  without  touching 
them  with  their  hands,  and  so  they  carry  the  baskets  from  market. 
Be  very  good  boys 

The  young  Alfred,  to  whom  the  next  letter  is  addressed, 
was  a  son  of  his  brother  Rufus  ;  and  one  of  the  two  who, 
after  many  years'  enjoyment  of  the  bounties  of  his  home 
and  hand,  went  out  to  make  successfully  their  own  wa}T  in 
the  world.  The  picture  of  the  greedy  youths  and  the  per- 
plexed waiters  is  hardly  antiquated  yet :  — 

Deae  Alfred  : 

.  .  .  .  Mr.  Adams  is  found  in  his  seat,  and  in  as  constant 
and  regular  discharge  of  his  duties  as  any  other  member  of  the 
House.  He  is  a  plain,  unostentatious  man,  as  purely  republican  in 
his  appearance  and  manners  as  any  man  on  earth.  He  is  treated 
with  the  utmost  respect  by  men  of  all  parties. 

To-day  has  been  the  first  levee  at  the  White  House,  and  it  oc- 
curred by  accident.  The  Globe,  supposing  it  usual  to  hold  a  levee 
on  Christmas  (which,  by  the  way,  is  never  done),  without  any 
authority,  inserted  an  article  stating  that  the  President's  house 
would  be  opened.  This  notice  being  issued,  it  was  too  late  to 
recall  it,  and  a  levee  was  held  in  due  time.  It  was  as  motley  an 
assemblage  as  the  multitude  at  a  cattle-show  or  fair. 

A  set  of  hungry,  voracious  boys  and  young  men  pressed  around 


CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIS  FAMILY.  89 

the  servants  who  bore  the  trays  of  cookies,  cakes,  and  wine,  and 
followed  them  as  a  company  of  sharks  would  follow  an  infected 
ship.  The  waiters  would,  in  vain,  try  to  escape  them  and  offer 
their  refreshments  to  the  ladies  ;  they  would  rush  on  and  devour 
the  whole.  • 

The  President  took  his  stand  in  the  ante-room,  and  received  all 
who  chose  to  pay  him  their  respects 

The  following  letter  may  fitly  conclude  this  chapter,  as 
bringing  the  Washington  life  of  the  yet  inexperienced 
statesman  to  the  close  of  its  first  month,  and  also  as  bring- 
ing these  memorials  to  the  mile-stone  of  a  closing  jTear. 

His  Berkshire  home  had  afforded  him  no  opportunity  of 
witnessing  such  pageants  as  those  of  Christmas  in  the 
Romish  churches,  and  it  is  not  strange  that,  brought  up 
as  he  had  been  to  the  simple  and  almost  barren  ritualism 
of  the  Baptist  church,  he  should,  find  very  little  solemnity 
in  the  performance  of  High  Mass  :  — 

Washington,  December  25,  1831. 
Woman  of  my  Heart  : 

This  being  a  high  day  at  the  Catholic  church,  I  attended  their 
service  of  High  Mass  this  morning.  Two  priests  officiated,  one  at 
the  desk,  the  other  at  the  altar.  The  one  at  the  altar  was  attended 
by  four  little  boys  about  George's  size,  clad  in  white  robes,  two  of 
them  with  scarlet  sashes  about  their  waist,  the  other  two  with 
scarlet  sashes  over  their  shoulders  and  down  their  backs.  The 
priest  at  the  altar  was  dressed  in  the  gaudy  style  of  a  play-actor. 
Upon  the  altar  stood  a  silver  crucifix  about  eighteen  inches  high, 
with  an  image  on  it  four  or  five  inches  long ;  the  foot  of  the  cruci- 
fix resting  in  a  very  gay  cluster  of  artificial  flowers. 

Six  candles,  four  or  five  feet  long,  were  burning  in  large  silver 
candlesticks.  The  priest  in  the  desk  informed  us  that  the  candles 
represented  the  apostles  performing  mass  in  the  caverns  of  rock 
and  subterranean  retreats,  where  they  were  driven  by  persecu- 
tion. 

8* 


90  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

To  me,  there  was  the  least  solemnity  of  anything  which  I  ever 

witnessed  in  the  form  of  religious  worship A  very 

excellent  discourse  was  delivered,  by  the  priest  in  the  desk,  upon 
the  duty  of  charity  to  the  poor.  A  contribution  was  taken  up  for 
the  church.  * 

A  merry  Christmas  to  you  all.    .... 


CHAPTER    VIII. 


IN  THE  "  HOUSE  "  — PARLIAMENTARY  KNOWLEDGE  — HIS  AFFABILITY  AND 
POPULARITY  — INDUSTRY  —  HIS  POSITION  AS  A  SPEAKER  —  AN  EFFICIENT 
SPEECH — SPEECH  ON  THE  APPORTIONMENT  BILL  —  FIRST  IMPRESSIONS 
OF  HENRY  CLAY  — HIS  DENOMLNATIONAL  POSITION  AND  FEELINGS. 


=;HE  Berkshire  lawyer  was  very  soon  transformed  into 
a  practical,  trustworthy,  and  efficient  member  of 
($£  Congress.  His  uncompromising  fidelity  to  con- 
gressional business ;  his  unobtrusive  and  genial 
manners  ;  his  diligence  and  success  in  learning,  not 
only  all  the  special  duties  which  belonged  to  his  place,  but 
no  less  the  whole  method  and  process  of  conducting  the 
afiairs  of  the  House,  —  made  him  popular,  not  with  those 
alone  who  were  of  the  same  political  creed,  but  with  the 
members  of  the  opposition,  also. 

If  there  was  —  as  it  not  infrequent!}-  happened  —  a  dis- 
pute in  the  House  upon  any  undetermined  point  of  order, 
none  were  so  competent  as  he  to  bring  method  out  of  the  pre- 
vailing disorder,  for  he  had  examined  all  available  sources 
for  information  upon  such  points,  and  precedents  were  as 
familiar  to  him  as  to  the  most  efficient  Speaker  who  ever 
sat  in  the  chair. 

The  uniform  urbanity  and  graceful  suavity  of  his  man- 
ners disarmed  all  who  might  have  otherwise  subjected  him 
to  personal  or  political  ill-will.  In  confirmation  of  this 
point,  is  his  daughter's  testimony  :  — 

"My  father  has  often  said  that  he  never  received  discourtesy 

91 


92  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE   N.  BRIGGS. 

from  any  member  of  the  House  :  and  never  found  any  difficulty  in 
arguing  with  the  most  fiery  Southerner,  upon  the  most  exciting 
topics  upon  which  they  disagreed.  On  the  contrary,  among  the 
gifts  of  friendship  and  respect  which  he  received  in  Washington, 
he  had  several  beautiful  and  valuable  cam  -  from  gentlemen  whose 
States  recently  stood  with  the  enemies  of  the  Government/' 

While  thus  making  fries  Is  in  Washington,  he  was  deep- 
ening the  regard  of  his  friends  at  home,  and  justifying,  by 
his  earnest  attention  to  their  interests  and  the  broader 
interests  of  the  Commonwealth  he  represented,  the  confi- 
dence they  had  so  cheerfully  reposed  in  him.  From  the 
first  to  the  last  term  of  his  patient  and  patriotic  services  in 
the  House,  he  sul  I  himself  to  no  reproaches  from  his 

constituents  by  any  remissness  of  duty,  or  by  any  officious- 
ness  and  presumption  in  guarding  and  advancing  measures 
involving  their  advantage. 

He  was  not  a  frequent  s]  ker  on  the  floor  of  the  House  ; 
and  yet  he  could  not  be  charged  with  being  simply  a  worker. 
He  s]  .:•■  on  various  occasions  ;  and  if  his  oratory  was  not 
as  splendid  as  that  of  the  men  who  inspired  many  of  his 
letters  with  enthusiasm,  he  was  always  heard  with  great 
interest  and  unqualified  respect. 

It  might  have  been,  not  unreasonably,  the  expectation 
of  those  who  remembered  the  strange  eloquence  of  his  boy- 
>h  tongue,  in  the  religious  meetings  to  which  reference  has 
been  made.  —  and  who.  in  later,  days,  heard  him.  it  may 
be,  addressing  a  jury  in  his  native  county,  that  he  would 
take  a  high  position  as  an  orator  in  Cong]  ss.  It  is  not 
important  that  his  failure  to  do  this  should  be  specially 
vindicated  ;  but  it  may  be  accounted  for.  perhaps,  by  the 
modesty  of  his  character,  which,  affected  powerfully  by  the 
consciousness  that  be  was  upon  the  arena  where  the  highest 


IS  THE  "HOUSE."  93 

genius  and  noblest  oratory  of  the  country  were  displayed, 
constrained  him  to  propose  to  himself  no  daring  competi- 
tion with  the  masters  he  was  content  to  hear  and  admire 
and  extol. 

TVhile  then  it  is  not  claimed  that  he  was  a  great  speaker, 
in  the  ordinary  acceptation  of  the  phrase,  it  is  nevertheless 
simple  justice  to  his  congressional  career  and  fame  to  insist 
that  his  protracted  services  in  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives assume,  in  the  light  of  a  fair  review,  an  aspect  of 
eminent  representative  ability.  His  speeches  were  always 
thoughtful,  consistent,  earnest,  and  effective.  He  did  not 
allow  himself  "  to  speak  to  Buncombe."  as  mere  ad  cajjtan- 
dum  oratory  has  come  to  be  denned.  ^Ie  proposed  to  influ- 
ence opinion  by  his  efforts  on  the  floor,  and  if  he  failed  of 
this  end.  it  was  not  because  he  sacrificed  reason  and  logic 
to  mere  sound  and  nonsense.1 

In  the  discussion  of  questions  that  arrayed  the  parties  in 
House  in  distinct  antagonism,  he  avoided  all  acrimony 
of  speech  or  manner,  and  was  so  fair  in  his  estimate  of  the 
views  of  his  opponents,  and  so  catholic  in  his  judgment 
and  in  his  expression  of  his  own  views,  that  he  never  lost 
the  chance  of  influencing  the  mind  of  his  political  oppo- 
nents by  arousing  their  passions,  and  so  blinding  their 
perceptions    y  his  own  indiscretion. 

His  very  first  effort  in  Congress  was.  perhaps,  as  fair  an 
example  of  his  force  and  depth  in  argument,  and  of  the 

1  The  Xs.tiojwl  Intelligencer  said  of  Ms  speech  upon  the  Apportionment  Bill, 
quoted  immediately  hereafter.  —  "He  is  probably  the  first  member  who  ever 
changed  a  vote  by  a  speech  on  the  floor  of  Congress.  A  member  from  Ken- 
tucky said,  after  the  close  of  Mr.  Brig^ - '?  :  ' I  had  made  up  my  mind  to 
for  the  bill ;  but  the  speech  of  the  young  member  from  Massachusetts  has 
convinced  me  that  the  bill  is  unjust  to  the  old  Revolutionary  States,  and  I  shall 
vote  against  it.-  " 


94  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

kindness  of  his  spirit,  as  airy  of  the  speeches  which  he 
made  during  his  early  service  in  the  House.  It  was  deliv- 
ered while  the  bill  for  altering  the  ratio  of  representation 
in  the  House  was  pending.  The  special  question  under 
consideration  was  the  motion  to  strike  out  48,000  as  the 
ratio,  and  to  insert,  instead,  44,000  in  the  Apportionment 
Bill. 

He  took  the  side  of  the  reduction  party,  and  advocated 
it  with  nice  discrimination  and  equal  kindness  of  manner. 
With  some  omissions,  the  following  is  his  speech  upon  that 
occasion  :  — 

"  This,  sir,  is  the  mo^  important  question  that  has  been  pre- 
sented during  the  discussion  of  the  subject  before  the  committee. 
I  consider  it  so  because  it  proposes  the  highest  ratio,  which  will 
save  to  each  State  its  present  number  of  representatives  upon 
this  floor.  If  48,000  prevails,  you  take  from  the  Southern  States 
and  from  New  England,  two  of  the  sections  of  this  country,  two 
members  each.  The  same  thing,  as  it  respects  New  England, 
occurred  under  the  apportionment  of  the  census  of  1820.  If  the 
bill  as  reported  becomes  a  law,  the  operation  of  the  two  appor- 
tionments will  be  to  reduce  the  number  of  representatives  from 
the  New  England  States  more  than  one  tenth.  The  gentleman 
from  Tennessee,  I  presume,  could  not  have  been  aware  of  this 
effect,  when  he  adverted  to  the  operation  of  the  last  apportionment 
to  sustain  the  report  of  the  committee.  This  bill  strikes  from 
New  Hampshire  one  sixth  of  her  representation  on  this  floor; 
from  Massachusetts,  one  sixteenth ;  from  Virginia,  one  twenty- 
second  part;  from  Maryland,  one  ninth.  If  these  consequences, 
so  unfortunate  to  the  individual  States,  and  so  undesirable  to  their 
sections  of  country,  can  be  avoided  without  the  introduction  of 
greater  evils,  I  trust  that  the  justice  of  this  Congress  will  see 
that  it  is  done. 

"  Mr.  Chairman,  are  there  not  reminiscences  connected  with  the 
history  of  these  old  States  worthy  of  consideration  in  the  settle- 


SPEECH  OX  THE  APPORTIONMENT  BILL.  95 

ment  of  the  question  ?  The  four  States  most  deeply  to  be  affected 
by  the  decision  which  we  are  about  to  make,  are  numbered  among 
the  immortal  thirteen.  May  they  not  point  you  to  those  great 
transactions  which  gave  birth  to  this  free  republic,  and  ask  you  to 
remember  the  days  of  their  trial  and  the  deeds  of  their  valor? 
May  they  not,  in  the  language  of  kindness  and  affection,  say  to 
their  younger  sisters,  'Do  not,  in  your  prosperity,  unless  some 
great  principle  demands  it,  or  some  great  interest  makes  it  neces- 
sary, drive  one  of  our  members  from  this  floor  whilst  you  are  so 
full}-  represented  ? '  May  they  not  say  to  their  sisters  of  the  West, 
'  The  great  domain  which  constitutes  your  rich  inheritance  was 
purchased  by  our  blood  and  treasure,  flowing  as  full  as  the  rushing 
fountain.  We  envy  not  your  prosperity,  nor  would  we  check  the 
rapid  growth  of  your  population.  Our  children  and  our  dearest 
friends  are  among  you,  participating  in  the  success  of  your  unpar- 
alleled fortunes.  But  we  ask  you  to  remember  that,  in  the  days 
of  your  minority  and  weakness,  we  successively  took  you  by  the 
hand,  upon  the  principles  of  equality  and  justice,  and  introduced 
you  into  the  great  republican  family.  We  are  gratified  with  your 
increasing  wealth.  We  are  proud  of  your  advancing  greatness, 
for  you  are  a  portion  of  our  common  country.'  Sir,  ma}-  not  old 
Massachusetts  and  old  Virginia  ask  their  elder  sister,  Xew  York,  — 
that  great  nation  in  itself,  —  to  remember  the  perils  and  conflicts 
of  by-gone  times  ?  In  the  great  struggle  of  the  Revolution  the 
State  of  New  York  —  which  now  appears  upon  this  floor  with  a  pha- 
lanx of  representatives  equal  to  the  whole  of  Xew  England  —  was 
comparatively  small,  and  stood  in  need  of  the  aid  of  her  powerful 
neighbors.  In  every  part  of  her  territory,  which  was  then  inhab- 
ited, may  now  be  found  the  bones  of  their  sons  whose  blood  crim- 
soned her  invaded  soil.  Their  relative  condition  has  now  changed. 
She  has  become  populous  and  powerful,  and  they  comparatively 
small.  When  she  can  at  once  be  just  and  generous,  will  she  be 
unmindful  of  her  ancient  friends  ?  Can  she  forget  Virginia  and 
Maryland  and  Massachusetts  and  Xew  Hampshire,  the  associates 
of  her  youth,  the  sharers  of  her  toils,  the  companions  of  her  glory? 

•  ••••••  • 

"  An  honorable  gentleman  from  North  Carolina  has  told  as  that  if 


96  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

we  increase  our  numbers,  we  shall  approximate  a  mob.  The  rep- 
resentatives of  the  people  constitute  a  mob !  Sir,  I  have  yet  to 
learn  that  mere  numbers  constitute  a  mob.  however  great  they 
may  be.  I  had  supposed  that  it  was  the  character  of  an  assembly 
which  would  entitle  it  to  that  appellation,  and  not  its  numbers. 
Let  it  not  be  said  that  a  great  and  enlightened  people  cannot 
increase  their  representatives  for  fear  that,  when  assembled,  they 
should  degenerate  into  the  character  of  a  mob.  The  spirit  of  our 
institutions,  and  the  true  principles  of  democracy,  demand  a  full 
representation  of  the  people  in  this  House.  It  was  a  great  ques- 
tion with  the  Congress  which  formed  our  Constitution,  whether 
the  members  of  this  branch  of  our  Legislature  should  represent 
the  States  in  their  corporate  capacity,  or  the  people  of  the  States. 
The  latter  principle  prevailed ;  the  former  was  adopted  in  respect 
to  the  Senate.  This  is  the  only  department  of  our  Government  in 
which  the  will  and  opinions  of  the  people  can  be  brought  directly 
to  bear  upon  their  public  servants.  A  democrat  by  birth,  by  edu- 
cation, and  from  choice,  I  fully  concur  with  the  eloquent  gentle- 
man from  Ehode  Island,  that  the  best  interests  of  the  people  of 
this  countiy  require  that  this  principle  should  be  carried  into  full 
and  perfect  operation.  The  representative  and  his  constituents 
ought  to  be  brought  as  near  each  other  as  possible.  To  secure 
the  great  object  of  the  elective  franchise,  the  citizen  should  know 
the  personal  and  political  character  of  the  candidate  for  his  suf- 
frages. It  is  this  particular  acquaintance,  this  personal  inter- 
course, which  fastens  on  the  mind  of  the  public  agent  an  abiding 
sense  of  his  responsibility  to  the  power  which  created  him.  The 
representative  ought  to  know  his  constituents,  and  be  intimately 
acquainted  with  their  wants  and  their  wishes,  their  manners  and 
customs,  their  business  and  pursuits.  As  you  increase  the  ratio 
of  representation,  you  lessen  the  facilities  for  acquiring  this 
knowledge." 

The  "  country  member"  carried  with  him  to  the  political 
metropolis  a  most  unsophisticated  nature,  and  took  a  fresh 
and  almost  boyish  interest  in  the  phases  of  social  life 
which  were  from  time  to  time  revealed  to  him.     He  had 


A    WASHINGTON  PARTY.  97 

been  in  Washington  onty  a  few  weeks  when  he  attended  a 
congressional  party,  of  which  he  wrote  the  following  ac- 
count to  his  wife  —  thinking,  no  doubt,  to  beguile  for  her 
the  weary  hours  of  his  absence  from  home  by  these 
glimpses  of  his  new  life  :  — 

0 

Washington,  Jan'y  4th,  1832. 
Dear  Harriet  : 

For  the  first  time,  last  evening,  I  attended  a  Washington  party. 
It  was  at  the  house  of  Duff  Green,  editor  of  the  United  States  Tel- 
egraph. All  the  members  of  Congress  were  invited,  and  great 
numbers  of  citizens.  There  were  probably  four  hundred  persons 
present.  Seven  rooms  above  and  below  were  thrown  open.  The 
ladies  were  mostly  below.  The  rooms  were  crowded  as  closely  as 
men  and  women  could  stand,  much  of  the  time;  and  yet  they 
would  contrive  to  make  a  ring  large  enough  to  dance  a  cotillon; 
but  it  was  what  I  call  a  squeeze  of  a  dance.  Yet  dance  they  would 
and  dance  they  did.  The  thing  would  have  been  well  enough  for 
boys  and  girls ;  but  to  see  men,  and  men  of  families  and  gravity, 
crowd  into  a  compass  scarcely  large  enough  to  turn  in,  engaged  in 
dodging  and  sprawling  about  with  giddy  girls,  is,  to  my  mind, 
extremely  ridiculous.  Whatever  may  be  its  pleasures  in  a  suitable 
hall,  in  such  a  place  as  this  I  can  imagine  no  rational  enjoyment  in 
it.  However,  every  one  to  his  liking ;  and  if  gentlemen  and  ladies 
reap  pleasure  from  such  an  exhibition,  they  have  my  perfect  con- 
sent to  attempt  it.  I  crowded  and  squeezed  around  among  them 
till  about  nine  o'clock;  and  home  I  came,  took  an  excursion  to 
Lanesboro',  went  to  bed  and  slept  away  the  night,  and  dreamed  I 
had  a  quarrel  with  you. 

There  is  reason  to  suppose  that,  much  as  Mr.  Briggs 
valued  the  opinions  and  judgment  of  his  able  friend  Mr. 
Shaw,  one  estimate  of  that  gentleman  was  greatty  qualified, 
if  not  indeed  reversed,  b}^  his  own  maturer  judgment.  Mr. 
Shaw  said,  in  one  of  his  letters  to  the  young  student : 
"But  Mr.  Clay  is  not,  in  my  judgment,  the  ablest  man  in 

9 


1)8  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

the  House."  The  following  mention  of  the  great  Kentucky 
statesman  conve}Ts  an  estimate  of  him  more  nearly  in  har- 
mony with  his  paramount  abilities,  than  the  one  referred 
to, — though  this  may  be  due  to  the  difference  of  time  be- 
tween the  two  observations.  Mr.  Briggs  writes  to  his 
wife :  — 

Washington,  Jan.  11th,  1832. 
Dear  Harriet: 

We  have  had  in  the  House,  to-day,  a  very  splendid  and  masterly 
speech  from  Henry  Clay.  Notice  was  given  that  he  would  speak 
to-day.  At  a  very  early  hour  the  Senate  chamber  was  filled  to 
overflowing.  A  great  concourse  of  ladies  —  all  the  beauty  and 
fashion  of  the  city  —  were  present.  Our  House  was  depopulated; 
so  that  we  were  compelled  to  adjourn  two  hours  before  the  usual 
time.  He  fully  met  the  highest  expectations  of  his  friends.  He  is 
a  wonderful  man.  I  called  on  him  this  evening.  Such  is  his 
frankness  and  suavity,  that  one  immediately  feels  that  he  is  in  the 
presence  of  a  friend  to  whom  he  can  unbosom  his  thoughts  with- 
out reserve.     He  lives  near,  and  I  see  him  at  his  house  often. 

There  is  a  General  Griflhi  in  Congress,  from  South  Carolina,  —  a 
Baptist  deacon.     He  seems  a  very  worthy,  pious  man.     He  says 
that  in  his  part  of  the  State  there  have  been  great  additions  to  the 
Baptist  churches  during  the  last  year.     He  is  one  of  the  right  kind 
of  Baptists.     Though  he  regards  with  charity  and  good-will  the 
name  and  character  of  Christian,  under  whatever  form  it  exists, 
yet  he  manifests  a  peculiar  love  and  good-will  and  brotherly  attach- 
ment to  all  those  who  stand  in  that  endearing  relation  to  him 
which  arises  from  sameness  of  opinion  and  harmony  of  feeling? 
and  sentiment.     A  gentleman  who  belongs  to  the  Presbyterian 
church  said  to  me,  the  other  day,  '-Briggs,  do  you  not  think  that 
the  Baptists  love  each   other  better,   and  have  more    Christian 
fellowship  for  one  another,   than  most   other    denominations?" 
••  Why,"  said  I,  ;;  do  you  ask  me  such  a  question  ?  "   "  Because,"  said 
he,  '*I  have  observed  it,  and  believe  it  to  be  true."    This  remark 
gave  me  much  more  pleasure  than  to  have  heard  him  say,  the  Bap- 


DENOMINATIONAL   POSITION  AND  FEELINGS.  99 

tists  were  the  most  respectable  and  prosperous  people  in  the 

United  States. 

Love  to  all. 

Ever  thine,  George  N.  Briggs. 

The  glimpse  which  the  simple-minded  statesman  here 
affords  the  reader,  of  his  equal  ingenuousness  in  his  relig- 
ious opinions  and  preferences,  may  justify  a  brief  comment. 
He  was,  notwithstanding  his  proverbial  liberality  of  feeling 
towards  all  Christians,  very  firm  in  his  own  faith.  When 
sometimes  met  with  the  apparently  crushing  accusation 
from  some  one  who  opposed  his  views  of  communion  as  a 
Baptist,  "But  you  will  not  consent  to  commune  with  us," 
he  had  a  short-hand  answer  at  his  command:  "  I  do  not 
refuse  to  commune  with  any  Christian.  The  Bible,  as  we 
all  agree,  fixes  the  terms  of  communion,  and  I  dare  not 
change  them.  You  do  not  comply  with  the  terms  required. 
You  banish  yourself." 

His  solicitude  to  impress  upon  the  tender  minds  of  his 
children,  the  watchful  care  of  their  Father  in  heaven  for 
their  interest,  is  beautifully  exemplified  in  the  following 
letter,  addressed  to  them  upon  their  recovery  from  sick- 
ness :  — 

Washington,  Feb.  7,  1832. 
Harriet,  George,  and  Henry,  — 
My  dear  Children  : 

I  was  very  much  concerned  to  hear  from  Dr.  Tyler,  a  few  days 
ago,  that  you  had  the  measles ;  but  it  gave  me  pleasure  to  hear,  by 
letter  to-day,  that  you  are  doing  well.  You  must  remember  that 
the  disease  is  one  frequently  of  much  danger,  and  that,  the  mild 
manner  in  which  you  have  been  affected  by  it,  is  because  our 
Heavenly  Father,  whose  tender  mercies  are  over  all  His  works, 
was  Mud  and  good.  Now  that  you  have  passed  by  the  period  of 
danger,  you  should  remember  His  goodness  with  gratitude,  and 
resolve  to  obey. His  laws,  and  serve  Him  all  your  days. 

Your  loving  Father. 


165569 


CHAPTER    IX. 

DEATH  OF  HIS  YOUNGEST  CHILD  —  LETTERS  OF  CONDOLENCE  —  LETTER  TO 
HIS  FAMILY  PHYSICIAN  —  SKETCHES  OF  PROMINENT  CONGRESSMEN  —  A 
FRAGMENT  OF  HISTORY — LETTERS  —  TROUTING —  LETTER-SKETCH  OF 
HARRIET   LIVERMORE  — ANTICIPATIONS   OF   CHOLERA. 

/HE  year  which  began  with  him  so  auspiciously  and 
hopefully,  amid  the  new  and  exciting  occupations 
of  his  congressional  life,  was  speedily  clouded  by  a 
deep  personal  sorrow. 

His  son  remembers  that  his  father,  on  leaving 
home  for  Washington,  in  November,  was  strangely  and 
irresistibly  impressed  with  the  belief  that  he  should  never 
see  his  youngest  child  again.  He  mentioned  this  impres- 
sion to  his  travelling  companion. 

"  He  left  the  child,"  says  his  daughter,  "  in  blooming  health;  the 
charm  and  joy  of  his  home,  a  lovely  little  girl  of  two  years.  In 
February  she  sickened,  and  in  a  week  her  little  life  on  earth  was 
completed.  The  tenderness  of  the  grief  he  felt  in  losing  this  young- 
est one  was  not  affected  by  the  long  years  that  passed  before  he 
was  reunited  to  her,  though  they  had  kindly  plucked  from  it  the 
sting  and  bitterness." 

It  was  this  grief  that  shadowed  his  spirits  when  he  thus 

wrote :  — 

Washington,  February  25,  1832. 
My  dear  Daughter  :  „ 

When  I  last  wrote  you  and  your  little  brothers,  you  had  just 
been  restored  from  a  sickness  which  I  then  told  you  was,  in  many 

100 


DEATH  OF  HIS   YOUXGEST  CHILD.  101 

instances,  dangerous.  I  wished  to  impress  upon  your  minds  a 
sense  of  your  obligations  of  gratitude  to  the  Creator  for  His  good- 
ness in  carrying  you  safely  through.  I  little  thought,  then,  that 
your  baby  sister  was  so  soon  to  fall  a  victim  to  the  same  disease. 
But  the  wise  and  good  Being  who  gave  us  for  a  while  that  interest- 
ing little  child,  knew  best  when  it  was  proper  to  recall  the  gift,  and 
has  taken  her  to  himself.  Undoubtedly,  my  child,  one  of  the  de- 
signs of  Providence  in  removing  one  who  was  so  deeply  interwov- 
en into  our  affections,  was  to  warn  us  of  the  importance  of  being 
prepared  to  go  into  that  world  where  she  has  gone.  How  should 
the  thought  that  she  is  in  heaven,  and  all  her  infant  powers  em- 
ployed in  the  holy  occupations  of  that  place  of  happiness,  stimulate 
her  surviving  sister  and  brothers  to  endeavor  so  to  spend  their 
lives,  that,  when  they  die,  they  may  join  the  angel  spirit  of  their 
little  sister  ?  Whilst  governed  by  this  delightful  motive,  your  con- 
duct towards  each  other  will  be  full  of  affection  and  tenderness, 
and  towards  your  parents  dutiful  and  kind,  and  towards  all  re- 
spectful and  obliging.  Let  your  time  be  actively  employed  in  the 
culture  of  your  minds  and  in  the  improvement  of  all  the  faculties 
with  which  you  are  endowed  for  the  honor  and  glory  of  your  Crea- 
tor, and  for  the  promotion  of  the  happiness  of  those  with  whom 
you  are  placed.  I  have  been  pleased  with  your  letters  since  your 
sister's  death.  Whilst  you  remember  the  interesting  incidents  of 
her  short  life,  never  forget  that  she  was  removed  by  the  hand  of 
infinite  goodness  and  wisdom,  and  earnestly  pray  Him  to  prepare 
you  to  meet  her  in  heaven.  Write  me  often,  and  let  me  know  of 
your  progress  in  school. 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

In  the  next  letter  the  bereaved,  but  still  courageous  and 
trusting  heart  of  the  Christian  husband  and  father,  thus 
speaks  to  the  absent  wife  and  sorrowing  mother. 

Washington,  February  26,  1832. 
My  dear  Harriet  : 

Yours  of  the  17th  did  not  reach  me  until  this  evening.    Medita- 
9* 


102  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

tion  upon  our  loss,  aud  reflections  upon  your  lonely  and  sorrowful 

heart,  make  my  own  melancholy.     Let  us  not  look  too  much  on  the 

dark  side.     "While  we.  from  the  disappointment  in  the  unexpected 

death  of  our  child,  indulge  ourselves  in  grief,  let  us  reflect  what  she 

has  gained  by  being  thus  taken  from  an  evil  world.    I  send  you  a 

sermon  which  I  have  received  from  my  friend  Judge  Lyman,  of 

Northampton,  preached  from  the  same  text  Elder  Johnson  used  at 

the  funeral  of  our  little  daughter.     The  curl  of  that  flaxen  hair  was 

a  mournfully  precious  keepsake.     It  brings  fresh  to  my  mind  the 

appearance  of  that  beautiful  head,  whose  shining  locks  I  have  so 

often,  with  such  peculiar  delight,  combed  and  parted.     But,  my 

dear  Harriet,  I  fear  by  dwelling  on  such  thoughts  and  association? 

I  am  led  too  deeply  to  lament  the  visitation  of  Providence,  at 

which  I  hope  I  do  not  repine  or  murmur.     I  inclose  a  ring,  which 

I  know  will  be  rendered  precious  to  you  for  the  bright  little  lock 

of  Anna's  hair  which  it  contains.     The  few  lines  from  our  dear 

mother  gave  me  peculiar  satisfaction ;  what  a  miserable  world  this 

would  be  to  that  poor  woman,  if  there  were  no  hereafter !    Her  life 

has  been  little  else  than  a  succession  of  sorrows  and  sufferings ; 

though  time  moves  tardily  on,  a  few  weeks,  I  hope,  will  bring  us 

together. 

God  have  you  in  his  holy  keeping,  and  comfort  you  by  his  spirit. 

Love  to  all. 

Thine,  G.  X.  Beiggs. 

Into  the  shadow  of  this  grief  his  faithful  friend,  Henry 
Shaw,  advances,  and,  in  his  kind  manner,  makes  this  charac- 
teristic attempt  to  comfort  his  friend  :  — 

Boston,  February  17,  1832. 
Dear  George: 

The  melancholy  tidings  of  your  loss  reached  me  yesterday.  To 
attempt  any  suggestions  that  might  assuage  your  feelings  would  be, 
just  now,  a  mockery  of  my  own.  With  the  full  heart  of  a  parent.  I 
sympathize  and  mourn  with  you  —  consolation  can  alone  be  found  in 
the  reflection  that  an  all- wise  Providence  has  done  it.  My  own  little 
pet  was,  at  the  same  date,  ill,  though  rather  improving.  She  may 
also  die,  I  thought ;  and  I  selected  a  brilliant  star,  and  called  it  the 


LETTERS   OF  COXDOLEXCE.  103 

home  of  my  child,  and  with  this  fancy  I  looked  and  still  look,  when 
evening  comes,  toward  the  heavens,  and  in  dreamy  imaginings 
people  the  orb  with  a  race  of  kindred  spirits,  pure  and  spotless  as 
the  angels.  Can  you  profit  by  the  conceit?  After  all,  my  friend, 
how  selfish  are  our  sorrows  !  For  what  end  would  we  recall  the 
departed  spirit  of  an  innocent  babe  ?  That  it  might  tread  with 
sorrow  the  vak  of  tears,  and  after  having  tasted  every  bitter  cup, 
sink,  worn  down  with  care,  a  victim  to  the  untold  wretchedness 
of  life  ?  No  !  but  we  wTould  make  it  happy,  —  this  belongs  not  to  us 
to  accomplish,  —  we  would  keep  it  because  it  ministers  to  our  pleas- 
ure. Its  innocence  delights  us.  Its  opening  intellect  flatters  our 
hopes.  We  love  the  child,  but  we  love  ourselves  more.  The  end 
of  life  is  death,  and  if  that  end  come  before  the  image  of  God  with- 
in us  is  tainted  by  vice  or  marred  by  evil  developments,  ought  we 
too  deeply  to  deplore  it  ?  Bather  let  us  submit  to  a  destiny  that 
places  in  heaven  an  angel,  to  persuade  us  thither  and  to  welcome 
our  coming.  If  I  could  console  you  I  would,  for  I  feel  how  void 
must  be  your  heart,  how  deep  its  loneliness ! 

The  winter  has  been  to  us  all  a  dreary  one,  while  sorrow  and 
mourning  afflict  our  village.     However,  I  shall  not  stay  long. 

Your  friend,  sincerely, 

H.  Shaw. 

He  thus  tenderly  writes  to  his  old  friend  and  family 
physician,  in  reply  to  his  letter  announcing  the  death  of  his 
child :  — 

Washington,  18th  February,  1832. 
My  dear  Friend  : 

The  messages  of  sorrow  and  friendship,  which  the  mails  of  the 
last  few  days  have  brought  me  from  you,  have  made  a  deep  im- 
pression on  my  heart.  They  were  not  the  cold  despatches  of  the 
physician  conveying,  in  technical  terms,  the  condition  of  his  suffer- 
ing patient.  They  came  fraught  with  the  feelings  of  anxious 
friendship.  I  read  in  them  all  the  stifled  wish  to  save  the  feel- 
ings of  an  anxious  father,  the  life  of  whose  darling  child  was  pois- 
ing between  life  and  death,  and  the  faithful  intention  of  communi- 


104  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  K.   BRIGGS. 

eating  the  unwelcome  truth,  but  in  such  a  manner  as  not  roughly 
to  inflict  a  wound  upon  a  parent's  heart.  Your  first  letter  told  me 
the  fate  of  my  dear  little  daughter.  From  the  hour  of  its  reception, 
I  endeavored  to  prepare  my  mind  for  the  fatal  intelligence  of  the 
last.  You  have  watched,  with  parental  solicitude,  the  dying  mo- 
ments of  a  charming  little  child,  and  therefore  know  the  difference 
between  a  parent's  feelings   when  expecting  the  event,  and  its 

fatal  occurence.     I  was  present  at  the  funeral  of  your  lovely  C . 

I  loved  the  child,  and  thought  I  entered  into  your  feelings  and 
sympathized  with  your  sorrows.  But  the  tender  ties  which  bind  a 
lovely  infant  to  a  father's  .heart  had  not  then  been  mine  and  sud- 
denly torn  asunder.  I  knew  nothing  of  your  grief.  As  well  might 
we  attempt  to  judge  of  the  exquisite  sounds  of  a  high-toned  musi- 
cal instrument,  whose  strings  remain  untouched,  as  to  judge  of  the 
deep  agony  of  a  parent's  soul  at  the  loss  of  his  tender  offspring 
without  having  felt  the  rude  touch  upon  those  strings  which  bind 
that  offspring  to  his  heart.  I  feel,  very  sensibly,  the  deep  interest 
you  took  and  the  unremitting  care  you  bestowed  upon  our  child. 
It  is  a  matter  of  regret  that  my  absence  should  have  imposed  so 
heavy  a  tax  on  my  friends  at  home.  But  I  am  sure  the  recollec- 
tion of  their  kindness  will  be  long  and  gratefully  cherished.  In 
the  midst  of  chastisement  our  benevolent  Father  has  remembered 

mercy 

Your  faithful  friend, 

Geo.  N.  Beiggs. 
Dr.  W.  H.  Tyeer. 

The  following  letter  is  addressed  to  his  nephew,  and  in- 
cludes some  interesting  pen-and-ink  portraits  of  prominent 
men :  — 

Washington,  March  25,  1832. 
Dear  Alfred  : 

•  ••••••• 

The  Vice-President,  John  C.  Calhoun,  is  nearly  six  feet  high,  a 
little  round  shouldered,  and  stoops ;  rather  slim,  though  he  appears 
as  if  he  were  made  of  nail-rods ;  face  thin ;  cheek-bones  somewhat 
high;  dark  blue  eyes;  very  quick  in  his  motions;  and  seems  at 


SKETCHES   OF  PROMINENT  CONGRESSMEN.  105 

one  glance  to  pierce  you  through.  No  one  can  encounter  that 
piercing  eye  without  involuntarily  experiencing  a  wish  to  retreat 
from  its  gaze.  His  hair  is  very  long  and  black,  and  stands  erect  in 
every  direction  upon  his  head.  He  has  more  expression  of  face 
than  any  man  I  ever  saw ;  is  remarkably  free  and  familiar  in  his 
manners  and  intercourse ;  makes  no  effort  to  put  on,  or  maintain, 
an  artificial  dignity,  when  in  the  chair  or  out  of  it.  He  speaks 
with  great  rapidity.  His  voice  is  clear  and  sharp  and  shrill.  He 
is  a  man  of  uncommon  intellect,  and  evidently  bears  the  marks 
of  disappointed  ambition.  His  opinions,  whether  right  or  wrong, 
are  avowed  with  great  fearlessness. 

Gen.  Smith  is  eighty-two  years  old,  and  is  about  as  large  as  our 
neighbor  Mr.  Miles  Powell,  whom  he  resembles  more  than  any 
man  living.  The  scene  between  him  and  Mr.  Clay  has  been  mis- 
represented in  the  grossest  manner.  At  the  opening  of  the  first 
speech,  Mr.  Clay  said  he  felt  sensibly  the  approach  of  age.  To 
this  Gen.  S.  had  alluded  in  a  taunting,  rude  manner.  On  another 
occasion  he  charged  him  with  ignorance,  in  not  having  seen  a  law 
about  which  he  spoke.  There  was  not  the  slightest  irony  in  Mr. 
Clay's  manner  or  language,  with  the  exception  of  the  couplet  from 
Pope.  During  his  splendid  speech,  before  the  altercation,  there 
was  a  burst  of  eloquence,  which  all  felt  to  be  irresistible,  and 
which  produced  a  cheering  and  clapping  from  the  vast  multitude 
thronging  the  gallery.  Upon  this,  the  General  arose,  and,  in  a 
perfect  rage,  called  on  the  Vice-President  to  put  an  end  to  the 
disturbance.  No  one  heeded  his  petulance,  and  the  orator  pro- 
ceeded. 

Your  friend  and  uncle, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  uncle  continues  his  pen-pictures  for  the  gratification 
of  his  nephew  :  — 

Washington,  March,  1832. 
Dear  Alfred  : 

You  inquired,  a  few  days  ago,  if  Col.  Johnson  is  not  a  Baptist.  I 
learn,  upon  inquiry,  that  he  is  not  a  professor  of  religion,  but  is 
friendly  to  the  Baptist  denomination.    He  is  a  man  of  hardly  mid- 


106  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BR1GGS. 

die  stature,  light  complexion,  a  mild,  pleasant  countenance,  light- 
blue  eyes,  rather  inclined  to  stoop, — and  his  whole  personal  ap- 
pearance directly  opposite  to  that  which  one  would  expect  to  meet 
in  the  person  of  the  soldier  who  has  the  reputation  of  killing 
Tecumseh. 

Judge  Marshall  is  said  to  be  seventy-seven  years  of  age.  He  is 
a  plain,  venerable-looking  man,  has  long,  gray  hair,  parted  from 
the  top  of  his  head,  and  tied  in  a  heavy  queue  behind.  I  should 
think  him  about  six  feet  high.  His  dress  is  that  of  days  that  have 
passed  away,  —  long  waisted,  single-breasted  coat,  small-clothes, 
and  old-fashioned,  round-toed  shoes.  He  boards  nearly  two  miles 
from  the  Capitol,  but  walks  back  and  forth,  whether  it  rains  or 
shines,  without  an  overcoat.  His  step  is  strong  and  elastic.  His 
voice  is  extremely  feeble.  In  delivering  an  opinion,  he  cannot  be 
heard,  even  in  perfect  silence,  twenty  feet  distant ;  but  his  mind 
retains  its  unimpaired  vigor.  His  whole  appearance  is  venerable 
and  imposing.  His  manners  are  very  plain,  easy,  and  dignified. 
Let  me  hear  from  you  often.  The  absence  of  that  dear  little  girl 
must  leave  a  lonesome  house.     God  bless  you,  my  dear  fellow. 

Yours,  truly, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  following  letter  contains  an  interesting  fragment  of 
history,  which  may  be  properly  supplemented  here  with  the 
reminder  that  the  State  of  Georgia  disregarded  the  judg- 
ment of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  visited  its  displeasure  upon 
the  missionary  by  long  imprisonment,  from  which  he  was 
finally  released  by  the  clemency  of  the  Governor  :  — 

Washington,  Mar.  4th,  1832. 
My  dear  Harriet: 

I  had  letters  to-day  from  George  and  Harriet.  George  reminds 
me  that  to-day,  the  fourth  of  March,  is  his  birthday,  making  him 
ten  years  old.  The  fact  irresistibly  recalls  many  interesting  asso- 
ciations. 

The  Supreme  Court,  yesterda3T,  delivered  their  opinion  in  the 
case  of  Mr.  Worcester  (a  missionary  among  the   Cherokee  In- 


FRAG  ME  XT  OF  HISTORY.  107 

dians),  against  the  State  of  Georgia.  The  State  of  Georgia  passed 
a  law  making  it  a  state-prison  offence  for  any  white  man  to  reside 
among  the  Indians  without  a  license  from  the  State.  Mr.  Worces- 
ter, being  a  missionary  among  the  Indians  at  their  request,  and 
under  a  license  from  the  United  States,  refused  to  quit  the  coun- 
try ;  upon  which  the  State  of  Georgia  caused  him  to  be  prose- 
cuted, convicted,  and  imprisoned  for  a  violation  of  the  lavv .  Mr. 
Worcester  brought  a  writ  of  error  in  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States,  to  have  the  judgment  reversed.  The  court  decided* 
that  the  laws  of  Georgia,  under  which  he  was  condemned,  and  the 
laws  by  which  the  State  claimed  a  right  to  control  the  Cherokee 
Indians,  were  unconstitutional,  and  therefore  void.  They  also 
decided  that  the  Cherokee  nation  is  a  separate  and  independent 
nation,  and  that  the  State  of  Georgia  has  no  right  to  interfere  with 
them  in  their  lands.  I  hope  this  just  decision  by  the  highest  tri- 
bunal of  the  United  States,  in  favor  of  a  much-injured  race,  will  be 
the  means  of  restoring  to  them  that  justice  which  is  their  due. 
Tell  the  doctor  that  all  the  principles  which  the  advocates  of  the 
Indians  contended  for  last  winter,  in  our  lyceum,  have  been  sus- 
tained, by  the  court,  in  the  fullest  manner. 

May  the  best  of  heaven's  blessing  fall  on  you,  and  the  dear  family 
that  are  spared.    Love  to  all. 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  Representative  in  Congress  was  not  yet,  it  would 
seem,  so  much  of  a  hero  to  his  own  children  but  that  one 
of  them  was  saucy  enough  to  play  a  First-of- April  trick 
upon  him.     Of  this  he  writes  :  — 

Washington,  April  7,  1832. 
My  dear  Harriet  : 

A  letter  came  to-day  in  an  envelope,  which  induced  me  to  think 
it  contained  something  precious.  On  taking  off  the  envelope  and 
breaking  the  seal,  I  was  amused  to  read  the  words,  "  April  Fool," 
and  at  the  bottom  of  the  sheet,  "Your  dear  son,  Geo.  P.  Briggs." 
It  reminded  me  of  a  boyish  trick  which,  you  will  remember,  was 
played  by  his  father  upon  a  certain  young  lady  some  fifteen  or  six- 


108  MEMOIR  OF  GEOBGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

teen  years  ago.  How  rapidly,  and  with  a  more  than  eagle's  swift- 
ness, time  flies  awaj\  How  difficult  it  is  to  realize  that  the  parties 
to  the  little  "  All  Fools  "  trick  to  which  I  have  alluded,  who,  at  the 
time  it  was  plaj-ed  were  in  the  freshness  and  gayety  of  youth,  have 
passed  the  meridian  of  life  and  become  the  parents  of  a  family  of 
children  old  enough  to  begin  to  repeat  the  tricks  of  their  youth. 

Two  days  ago  Mr.  Cook,  of  Ohio,  received  a  note  preliminary  to 
9  challenge,  for  words  used  in  debate.  Give  yourself  no  appre- 
hension, for  I  think  there  is  no  danger  of  your  husband  getting 
into  a  duel. 

The  year  1832  will  long  be  remembered  as  the  dreadful 
cholera  summer.  In  the  following  letter  its  appearance  is 
first  mentioned :  — 

"  The  cholera  does  not,  thus  far,  prevail  exten- 
sively. I  hear  it  is  in  Albany.  I  think  you  have  not  much  to  fear 
from  it  in  the  country. 

"Lorenzo  Dow  is  among  the  curiosities  and  oddities  of  the  city. 
He  is  rather  a  patriarchal-looking  man.  His  hair  is  very  long, 
and  parted  like  a  woman's.  His  long  gray  beard  gives  him  a 
strange  appearance.  He  has  small,  gray  e}Tes,  quick  and  intelli- 
gent. I  have  heard  him  preach,  and  was  pleased  with  him.  His 
sermon  was  more  serious  and  methodical  than  I  expected.  He  is 
a  queer  being. 

"  Tell  Uncle  John  Farnuin  that  I  will  thank  him  not  to  take  all 
the  trout  out  of  the  brook  that  runs  through  the  meadow,  before  I 
come  home.  Should  he  be  disposed  to  catch  any,  my  mark  is  a 
multitude  of  little  red  spots  on  the  sides  of  the  fish,  and  they  have 
black  backs  and  white  bellies." 

This  allusion  to  his  trouting  tastes  will  find  its  proper 
sequence  in  what  his  daughter  says  concerning  it :  — 

"  His  excessive  fondness  for  trouting  never  abated.  Many  a 
summer's  day  has  he  fished  down  the  beautiful  Housatonic,  quite 
from  its  source   in  the  north  part  of  Lauesboro',  through  the 


TROUTIXG  —  REMARKABLE    WOMAN.  109 

'Happy  Valley.'  The  great  mountain  on  the  north,  and  the  undu- 
lating wave-like  hills  on  the  west,  casting  over  him  their  lengthen- 
ing shadows,  —  the  velvety  meadows  beguiling  him  with  their 
softness. — the  more  fascinating  trout  holding  him  in  successful 
dalliance,  till,  with  a  full  string,  at  the  appointed  rendezvous,  he 
met  my  mother,  who,  in  the  carryall,  driving  the  veteran  Billy,1 
had  passed  the  long  hours  with  her  book  and  knitting,  following 
along  the  road,  while  he  angled  in  the  winding  stream.  Arrived 
at  home,  perhaps,  with  a  cramp  in  his  leg,  and  over-weary,  he 
would  first  dispose  of  his  trout  among  the  invalids  in  the  neigh- 
borhood, and  then  he  was  willing  to  be  refreshed." 

The  following  personal  reminiscence  of  a  remarkable 
woman  will  interest  the  reader :  — 

Washington,  May  27th,  1832. 
Dear  Harriet: 

I  attended  church  at  the  Capitol  this  morning,  and  heard  the 
celebrated  Harriet  Livermore,  of  Xew  Hampshire,  preach.     In  her 

person  she   somewhat   resembles  Ann  Rexford I 

have  heard  but  few  better  models  of  correct  speaking 

She  is,  without  exception,  the  sweetest  singer  I  ever  heard.  Her 
voice  is  inconceivably  sweet,  and  though  not  loud,  was  distinctly 
heard  by  probably  a  thousand  people,  and  every  word  was  perfectly 
articulated.     She  said  she  was  going  among  the  Indians.     .     .     . 

He  had  a  constitutional  fear  of  disease  and  death,  which 
all  his  life,  as  his  family  say,  caused  him  much  mental  suf- 
fering, and  which  often  required  all  his  fortitude  and  power 
of  will  to  throw  off.  His  friends  sometimes  amused  them- 
selves at  this  timidity,  and  he  by  no  means  resented  their 
raillery  on  the  subject  when  he  was  in  good  health.  His 
daughter  says  :  — 

"  They  tell  a  story  of  him  and  Eufus  Choate,  which,  making 
some  allowance  for  embellishment,  I  heartily  believe.    After  the 

l  A  favorite  horse,  still  doing  service  for  the  family. 
10 


110  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

cholera  commenced  its  fearful  work  on  our  shores,  Mr.  Choate 
and  himself  were  exceedingly  apprehensive  of  its  appearance  in 
Washington,  as  the  session  was  prolonged  into  midsummer.  It  is 
said  they  were  in  the  habit  of  calling  daily  upon  Dr.  Sewall,  whom 
they  knew  intimately,  to  ask  if  there  were  any  cases  in  the  city. 
For  a  long  time  the  cheering  answer  was,  '  No.'  When,  at  last, 
there  occurred  cases  in  town,  and  Mr.  Choate  received  the  infor- 
mation, he  immediately  said,  'Don't  tell  Briggs,  doctor;  he  will 
have  an  attack  before  night.'  A  few  minutes  later  the  same  intel- 
ligence was  communicated  to  my  father,  when  he  exclaimed, 
'Don't  tell  Choate ;  it  will  frighten  him  to  death.'  " 

The  following  letter  to  his  wife  illustrates  the  habitual 
religiousness  of  his  mind  and  feelings  :  — 

Washington,  26th  June,  1832. 
Dear  Harriet  : 

I  am  not  surprised  at  your  alarm  on  the  appear- 
ance of  the  cholera.  There  is  much  in  it  to  appal.  But  still  it 
becomes  us  to  remember  that  mortality  is  stamped  upon  all  things 
in  nature ;  and  though  it  is  uncommon  to  see  our  fellow-mortals 
swept  off  by  scores  at  a  time,  by  a  resistless  disease,  yet,  when  we 
reflect  that  by  the  certain  operations  of  nature's  laws,  a  few  years 
would  do  the  same  work ;  and  when  we  consider  that  one  is  a  more 
sensible  exhibition  of  that  power  which  controls  life  and  death 
than  the  other,  we  should  bow  with  reverence  to  the  majesty  of 
that  power,  and  tremble  and  adore  the  Being  who  exercises  it  in  a 
manner  so  signal.  I  told  you  something  of  an  alarm  we  had, 
that  a  ship-load  of  diseased  emigrants  had  arrived  at  Alexandria, 
and  of  its  utter  want  of  truth.  Its  ravages  at  Montreal  and  Quebec 
are  truly  terrible ;  how  soon  it  may  make  its  appearance  in  differ- 
ent parts  of  our  country  I  know  not.  Our  ingratitude  and  trans- 
gressions, as  a  people,  deserve  the  severest  visitations  of  Divine 
judgments 

We  ought  to  endeavor  to  resign  ourselves  to  the  dispositions  of 
His  providence,  and  calmly  await  an&meet  whatever  His  goodness 
and  wisdom  appoints.  It  is  our  duty  to  use  all  means  in  our 
power  to  avert  sickness.  • 


AXTICIPAT10XS   OF  CHOLERA.  Ill 

Let  the  drains  about  the  house  be  perfectly  cleaned,  and  as  little 
filth  collected  as  possible.  Throw  about  chloride  of  lime  Per- 
sons should  often  bathe,  and  avoid  evening  air.  Eat  no  vegetables 
of  any  amount.  Live  temperately,  but  well.  A  firm  reliance  upon 
the  protecting  care  of  that  Providence  in  whose  hands  we  all  are, 
will  do  much  to  preserve  our  health,  especially  from  attacks  of 
contagious  diseases.  The  mind  should  make  itself  familiar,  by 
reflection,  with  the  worst,  and  cast  itself  on  Him  who  can  alone 
sustain,  and  trust  in  Him  for  the  event. 

Our  labors  are  very  severe  in  Congress.  I  am  quite  well.  May 
a  kind  and  good  God  preserve  us,  soon  to  meet,  and  rejoice  in  His 
goodness.  Do  not  imagine  that  this  letter  is  written  in  agitation. 
It  is  not  so.  I  hope  to  help  quiet  your  mind,  which  I  trust  is  not 
greatly  excited.     God  bless  you  all. 

Yours,  G.  N.  Briggs. 


CHAPTER   X. 


AT  HOME  —  SAD  MEMORIES  —  REMINISCENCES  OF  THE  CHOLERA  —  LETTER 
FROM  RUFUS  CHOATE — NEW  YEAR'S  LETTER  FROM  WASHINGTON  —  EX- 
TRACT FROM  SPEECH  ON  IMPORT  DUTIES  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER- 
DOMESTIC  FABRICS  —  A  HOME-MADE  SUIT  OF  BROADCLOTH  —  LETTERS  — 
FUNERAL  OF  WILLIAM   WIRT  — TRIBUTE  TO   REV.   W.   R.   STOCKTON. 


HE  last  of  July  of  this  year  brought  him  again  to 
his  home  in  the  Boro',  and  to  the  welcome  of 
^^A,  friends  and  neighbors,  after  an  absence  of  eight 
Oj$    months. 

"  We  children,"  says  the  daughter,  "  knew  only  joy  at  his  return, 
and  could  not  understand  the  distress  our  parents  suffered,  even  in 
the  happiness  of  a  reunion.  Neither  did  we  understand  why  our 
father  could  not  look  at  the  picture  of  little  Anna,  which  was  so 
living  in  its  truthfulness  and  loveliness,  that  it  seemed  almost  her- 
self. For  weeks  we  wondered  that  he  could  not  hear  her  name 
nor  be  told  the  story  of  her  sickness,  nor  go,  as  we  had,  with  our 
mother,  to  the  place  in  the  church-yard,  where  her  little  form  had 
been  so  peacefully  sleeping  all  the  spring  and  summer." 

"We  all,"  continues  Mrs.  Bigelow,  "have  vivid  recollections  of 
the  cholera  remedies  which  were  brought  home,  including  a  tin 
vapor-bath  of  formidable  dimensions,  and  round  boxes  of  numbers 
1,  2,  and  3,  besides  sundry  powders,  to  be  administered  in  various 
stages  of  the  dreaded  disease.  I  remember,  too,  hearing  him 
describe,  years  after,  that  dreadful  night  in  New  York,  which  a 
most  characteristic  and  amusing  letter  from  Mr.  Choate  commem- 
orates. He  said  the  stillness  of  the  tomb  reigned  in  the  death- 
struck  city ;  and  at  an  alarm  of  fire  no  response  came  from  the 
usually  alert  firemen.     Nothing,  literally  nothing,  was  heard,  save 

112 


L  E  TTER  FR  OM  R  UFUS  CHOA  TE.  113 

the  footfalls  of  the  man  who  uttered  the  cry,  as  they  fell  rapidly 
on  the  echoing  pavements." 

The  following  is  the  letter  to  which  the  daughter  here 
refers  ;  and  the  picture  it  presents  of  his  excitement,  under 
the  contagion  of  fear,  is  well  worthy  of  a  framework  that 
may  preserve  it :  —    - 

Salem,  Aug.  12,  1832. 
My  dear  Colleague  : 

I  rejoice  to  have  it  under  your  hand  that  you  got  home  so  well, 
and  have  thus  far  escaped  the  fell  destroyer  of  so  much  of  our 
peace  at  Washington.  Like  you,  I  had  formed  various  projects 
for  stopping  at  Newark,  Jersey  City,  Long  Island,  and  where  not ; 
all  ending  in  an  infernal,  long,  sleepless,  and  terrific  night,  at  the 
Atlantic  Hotel.  The  doctor  and  I  found  quarters  in  the  same 
room.  The  moon  shone  as  upon  the  city  of  the  dead ;  and  the 
only  sounds  from  the  streets  I  took  to  be  the  footsteps,  or  the 
slow  wheels,  of  the  bearers  of  the  suddenly  sick,  or  those,  more 
happy,  whose  sickness  was  all  over.  Between  you  and  me,  I  came 
once  or  twice  in  the  night  to  what  old  people  call  hysterics  —  a 
sort  of  rascally  nervous  inclination  to  squeal  and  kick  up  my  heels, 
fancy  ministering  to  fear  and  fatigue ;  and  when  the  morning-star 
rose  at  length,  it  seemed  to  glitter  and  sing  as  on  the  day  of  the 
creation  —  so  long  and  full  of  horror  had  been  the  night !  So  I  sal- 
lied down  to  the  wharf  to  take  the  New  Haven  boat,  and  was  told 
it  was  quarantined  at  New  Haven,  and  that  it  was  doubtful  if  any 
mode  of  leaving  the  city  for  the  Eastward  would  be  provided 
while  the  cholera  continued.  Having  the  premonitory  symptoms 
very  bad,  I  cleared  for  the  Albany  boat,  shot  up  to  Poughkeepsie, 
and  came  home,  leaving  my  umbrella  and  twelve  shirts  (my  wife 
says  fifteen)  at  Jarvis's,  in  Poughkeepsie.  There  I  called  a  doctor, 
who  proved  a  modest,  clever,  sensible  fellow,  a  friend  of  Pendle- 
ton and  Clay,  and  a  most  decided,  prepared  foe  of  all  cholera.  He 
said  nothing  ailed  me.  Whereupon  I  went  to  bed,  gentle  as  a  lamb, 
and  slept  like  a  rock.  Our  people  here  are  cool  on  the  occasion. 
They  send  me  my  last  year's  bills  to  pay  with  as  much  punctuality 

10* 


114  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

as  if  all  was  straight,  and  receive  my  United  States'  bills,  as  if  they 

expected  to  live  a  thousand  years.     I  am  shocked  at  such  conduct. 

Yours,  in  all  love  and  honor, 

R.  Choate. 

The  reopening  of  Congress  found  him  promptly  at  his 
post  again.  During  the  recess  and  his  sojourn  at  home, 
his  daughter  made  a  public  profession  of  her  faith  in 
Christ,  and  he  writes  to  her  this  New  Year's  letter,  —  the 
only  fragment  of  his  Washington  correspondence  during 
that  session  which  these  memoirs  include  :  — 

Washington,  Jan.  1st,  1833. 
My  dear  Daughter: 

I  have  only  time  to  write  you  a  few  words  this  evening,  and  to 
wish  you  a  happy  Xew  Year.  This,  I  have  no  doubt,  my  child, 
will  be  a  New  Year's  day  which  you  will  regard  with  peculiar 
interest.  Within  the  year  just  passed  away,  you  have  taken  upon 
yourself  a  profession  and  a  character,  which  you  have  the  deepest 
possible  interest  to  sustain  during  the  remainder  of  your  life.  To 
maintain,  especially  by  young  persons,  the  consistent  and  beauti- 
ful character  of  a  disciple  of  Jesus,  is  a  thing  of  first  importance. 
Though  at  the  present  day  the  Christian  profession  has  many  aids, 
yet  to  the  young  and  inexperienced  every  path  is  strewn  with 
snares  and  evils.  Caution,  prudence,  and  reflection  should  direct 
and  guard  the  way.  A  humble  reliance  and  dependence  upon  the 
great  Author  of  our  being,  and  the  Rock  of  our  Salvation,  should 
be  our  constant  support 

On  the  14th  of  January,  he  delivered  a  speech  in  the 
House,  in  opposition  to  the  bill  "  to  Reduce  and  otherwise 
Alter  the  Duties  on  Imports."  In  this  speech  he  displayed 
his  wonted  fidelity  to  the  interests  of  his  constituents,  and 
argued  his  cause  with  much  force  and  felicity  of  language. 
A  single  passage  will  suffice  to  show  the  style  and  the 
spirit  alike  of  this  performance  :  — 


LETTER    TO  HIS  DAUGHTER.  115 

"Mr.  Chairman,  has  it  been  seen  in  nature  that  the  flowers  of 
spring  bud  and  blossom  and  beautify  the  earth,  under  the  influence 
of  perpetual  frosts  ?  Is  the  earth  green  and  verdant,  and  does  it 
yield  to  the  husbandman  a  plentiful  harvest,  where  the  poisonous 
simoon  blows  its  withering  blasts  ?  And,  sir,  will  it  be  contended 
that  under  the  operation  of  unwise,  imprudent,  and  oppressive 
laws,  the  peop1^  of  any  country,  no  matter  what  may  have  been 
their  natural  advantages,  ever  advanced  rapidly  in  population  and 
wealth,  in  all  the  arts  and  improvements  that  adorn  and  embellish 
private  life,  and  add  dignity  and  consequence  to  national  charac- 
ter? Such  an  assumption  would  set  at  defiance  every  principle  of. 
political  economy,  and  call  in  question  the  truth  of  all  history. 
"Why,  then,  is  a  policy  under  which  the  country  has  reached  an 
unrivalled  prosperity,  to  be  rashly  assailed  and  destroyed?  Are 
we  growing  impatient  under  too  much  good  fortune  ?  Has  great 
success  made  us  restless  and  eager  for  a  change?  Let  us  take 
counsel  of  experience,  and  learn  wisdom  from  the  past,  before  we 
take  a  step  that  we  may  not  be  able  to  retrace." 

The  Christian-  father  approves  and  encourages  the  pious 
determination  of  bis  daughter  to  withhold  herself  from  the 
temptations  of  the  gay  and  frivolous  scenes  of  society. 
Writing  to  her  from  his  Berkshire  home,  he  says, — 

Laxesboro',  June  12,  1833. 
My  dear  Child  : 

Yours  of  the  4th  is  at  hand.  "We  are  glad  to  hear  you  are  settled 
in  a  pleasant,  convenient  boarding-place.  Your  resolutions  are 
right  ones.  I  hope,  by  divine  aid,  you  will  be  enabled  to  keep  them. 
While  Christians  should  always  remember  that  they  are  not  of  the 
world,  they  should  bear  in  mind  that  they  are  in  the  world.  All 
the  active  duties  of  life  can  be  performed,  and  yet  the  "followers 
of  the  Lamb  "  may  keep  themselves  unspotted.  We  are  made  for 
society,  and  it  is  the  duty  of  Christians  to  exercise  a  purifying 
influence  upon  the  society  in  which  they  may  he  placed.  You 
know  the  good  part  is  to  be  chosen.  It  must  be  chosen  with  sin- 
cerity, and  loved  and  cherished  with  all  the  powers  of  the  soul. 


116  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE   X.  BRIGGS. 

All  other  things  should  be  made  subordinate  to  it.  When  chosen, 
it  will  exercise  a  controlling  influence  on  the  life  and  actions  of  its 
possessor. 

His  daughter's  pen  supplies  the  following  interesting 
account  of  her  mother's  skill  at  the  loom,  and  of  her  father's 
beautiful  pride  in  the  products  of  it.     She  says,  — 

"  At  a  time  when  our  manufacturers  were  not  doing  what  they 
now  are  in  supplying  our  people  with  fabrics,  and  in  a  district 
where  one  of  the  accomplishments  of  the  fairest  girl  was  to  spin, 
beside  cunning  embroidery  and  kindred  flue  arts,  our  mother  was 
by  no  means  in  her  youth  deficient  in  her  attainments,  as  the 
snowy  linen,  Holland  and  damask,  '  fine  twined '  and  beautiful,  the 
soft  woollen  blankets  of  blue  and  white,  and  chiefest  coverlet  of 
brilliant  scarlet  and  white,  are  proofs.  These  are  kept,  with  care 
and  quite  innocent  pride,  among  our  heirlooms.  It  was  one  of 
the  affecting  incidents  of  the  last  week  of  his  life,  —  of  the 
very  morning,  indeed,  before  he  died,  —  that  my  father  moved  his 
hand  fondly  back  and  forth  on  the  soft,  light  blanket  thrown  over 
him,  and  said,  '  Made  more  than  forty  years  ago,  by  her  own 
hands.'  " 

The  allusion,  in  the  next  letter  to  his  daughter,  will  be 
appreciated  with  this  explanation  :  — 

Laxesboro',  Oct.  5,  1833. 
Dear  Harriet  : 

Your  mother  took  the  first  premium  on  her  cloth 

at  the  fair  (Berkshire  Agricultural  Cattle  Show  and  Fair),  which 
was  an  eight-dollar  set  of  teaspoons.  She  has  made  a  beautiful 
piece  of  cloth,  —  one  I  shall  feel  proud  to  exhibit  as  a  specimen  of 
household  industry  and  ingenuity 

"While  at  Washington  this  year  he  wore,  on  state  occa- 
sions, a  suit  of  clothes  made  of  this  realty  beautiful  cloth. 
Had  the  fair  solicitors  referred  to  in  the  following:  letter 


LETTERS.  117 

been  far  less  fair,  they  would  hardly  have  failed  in  their 
charitable  quest :  — 

Washington,  8th  Dec,  1833. 
Dear  Harriet: 

This  is  the  evening  of  the  third  Sabbath  since  I  parted  with  you 
and  my  little  family.  Time  and  distance  do  not  abate  my  solici- 
tude for  your  welfare. 

This  evening,  two  beautiful  young  ladies  called  on  me  for  char- 
ity to  one  of  the  Baptist  churches  of  this  city.  They  said  the 
church  was  poor.  I  told  them  that  was  one  of  the  characteristics 
of  Baptist  churches ;  — poverty  was  one  of  their  jewels.  The  so- 
licitors were  so  fair,  and  evinced  so  much  zeal  in  the  cause,  that  I 
could  not  turn  them  away  empty-handed.  I  promised  them  I 
would  go  the  next  Sunday  to  their  church,  and  hear  Dr.  Hall,  of 
Kentucky,  preach.  "When  I  have  heard  him,  I  will  say  more 
about  it. 

Tranquillit} ,  health,  and  happiness  to  you  all.  I  send  special 
greetings  to  mother.  Love  to  the  children,  and  kindest  remem- 
brance to  our  neighbors. 

In  strong  bonds, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

To  his  youngest  son,  he  writes  thus  playfully  :  — 

Washington,  Dec.  — ,  1833. 
Well,  my  dear  Henry,  you  continue  to  write  me  often, — that 
is  right.  I  hope  you  will  not  cease  to  do  so.  You  don't  quite 
remember  what  I  told  you  about  beginning  the  names  of  persons 
with  a  capital  letter.  You  see  it  don't  look  well  to  begin  henry 
with  a  small  h.  If  you  wish  to  write  about  hens,  why,  you  begin 
with  a  little  h  ;  but  if  jou  wish  to  write  the  name  of  a  smart,  likely 
boy,  you  begin  with  a  capital  H,  and  write  it  IZenry.  Tell  Harriet 
we  do  not  spell  ivrit,  rit.  I  think  such  a  "rit"  would  hardly  sue  a 
man.  How  do  the  old  cow  and  heifer  get  along?  What  are  you 
studying  at  school ?    Do  you  learn  well?    Does  Squier  learn  fast ? 


118  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

Do  you  take  good  care  of  your  mother  and  grandmother?    Tell 

me  all  the  news. 

Your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

His  honest  and  hearty  admiration  of  simplicity  of  man- 
ners is  continually  displayed  in  his  sketches  of  persons  :  — 

Washington,  3d  Jan.,  1834. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

I  dined  with  Mr.  Adams  last  evening  at  5  o'clock.  The  whole 
of  the  Massachusetts  delegation  were  there,  and  it  was  a  very 
pleasant  party.  I  called  on  Mr.  Adams  the  day  before,  and  was 
made  acquainted  with  Mrs.  Adams.  She  is  a  lady —  very  intelli- 
gent, affable,  and  agreeable.  While  she  has  the  manners  of  one 
who,  from  education,  intercourse  with  the  world,  and  position,  is 
far  above  the  great  proportion  of  those  women  who  move  in  the 
first  circles  of  society,  her  appearance  is  marked  with  the  ease 
and  simplicity  indicative  of  an  elevated  and  refined  intellect  and 
an  amiable  temper.  Though  somewhat  advanced  in  years,  she  has 
the  vivacity  and  cheerfulness  of  youth.  Her  dress  is  plain  and 
becoming.  Mr.  Adams  is  yet  plainer  in  his  personal  appearance. 
He  is  a  singular  and  a  wonderful  man.  When  he  opens  his  lips  in 
conversation,  his  words  seem  the  very  oracles  of  human  wisdom 
and  learning. 

To  his  nephew,  he  writes  :  — 

Washington,  14th  Jan.,  1834. 
Yours  of  the  28th,  my  dear  boy,  saying  that  you  had  made  up 
your  mind  not  to  go  to  Cleveland  till  spring,  came  to  hand  this 
morning.  I  was  sorry  to  learn  that  you  had  jielded  your  purpose 
of  commencing  the  practice  of  law  in  the  place  you  had  contem- 
plated according  to  your  previous  determination.  Remember,  my 
boy,  "there  is  a  tide  in  the  affairs  of  men,  which,  taken  at  its  flood, 
leads  on  to  fortune."  There  is  nothing  in  the  simple  fact  of  delay- 
ing, for  a  few  weeks,  the  time  of  executing  any  purpose  of  conse- 
quence ;  but  it  is  the  danger  of  falling  into  the  habit  of  irresolu- 
tion or  wavering,  if  a  fixed  purpose  is  permitted  to  be  shaken 


LETTER   TO   HIS  NEPHEW.  119 

without  sufficient  reason.  When  Washington,  after  having  been 
detained  late  at  night  at  his  office,  the  last  time  he  was  ever  in  it, 
was  asked  by  Mrs.  Washington  why  he  remained  so  late  :  "My  dear," 
said  he,  "  you  know  it  has  been  with  me  a  maxim,  and  one  I  have 
always  practised,  never  to  leave  till  to-morrow  what  may  be  done 
to-day."  The  wisdom  of  that  maxim  was  never  more  clearly 
shown  than  in  the  case  which  then  induced  him  to  avow  it.  If  the 
business  that  detained  that  great  man  had  not  been  done  then,  he 
would  never  have  performed  it,  for  death  put  an  end  to  his  labors 
in  a  few  brief  hours.  His  practice  was  a  beautiful  enforcement  of 
the  Scripture  injunction,  to  do  with  our  might  what  our  hands  find 
to  do.  You  will  not  consider  these  remarks  at  all  intended  to  con- 
demn your  course.  They  grow  out  of  an  imperfect  knowledge  of 
the  case,  and  are  only  intended  as  the  hints  of  one  who  feels  a 
deep  interest  in  your  prosperity,  which  may  not,  perhaps,  be 
unprofitably  in  your  thoughts,  as  you  look  over  your  plans  and 
lay  down  the  maxims  on  which  you  design  to  act  through  life. 

An  extract  from  a  letter  to  his  daughter  affords  an  illustra- 
tion of  his  religious  solicitude  for  his  children  :  — 

"  I  am  glad  of  the  account  you  give  of  your  brother  George.  I 
hope,  indeed,  that  he  has  learned  to  love  the  Saviour,  and  that  his 
future  life  will  be  adorned,  not  only  by  the  Christian  profession, 
but  with  the  Christian  character.  It  pleases  me  to  hear  that  your 
little  brother  Henry  "  remembers  his  Creator,"  and  learns  to  pray 
to  Him  in  early  childhood.  The  late  eccentric  John  Eandolph,  of 
Virginia,  in  a  letter  to  a  friend  a  few  years  before  his  death,  said, 
"At  one  period  of  my  life,  I  was  upon  the  point  of  yielding  to  the 
influence  of  the  French  philosophy  of  1794,  and  becoming  an  open 
infidel.  I  was  only  saved  from  the  fatal  error  by  recollecting  that 
when  a  child  my  dear  Christian  mother  used  to  have  me  kneel, 
and.  taking  my  little  hands  between  hers,  teach  me  to  say,  '  Our 
Father  who  art  in  heaven.'  " 

Under  the  date  of  Jan.  14th,  he  gives,  in  a  letter  to  his 
wife,  the  following  account  of  a  remarkable  sudden  death 
which  occurred  in  the  House  :  — 


120  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

"  The  regular  and  beaten  round  of  business  in  the  House  to-day 
was  broken  in  upon  in  a  manner  that  produced  such  a  sensation  as 
I  never  before  witnessed  in  a  public  assembly,  and  hope  never 
again  to  witness.  It  was  the  sudden  death  of  one  of  the  members. 
Judge  Bouldin,  of  Virginia,  took  the  floor  upon  an  all-abs.orbing 
question,  which  has  been  under  discussion  the  whole  session.  The 
House  was  full,  and  the  galleries  thronged.  In  the  ladies'  gallery 
was  the  wife  of  Judge  Bouldin,  who  had  come  up,  full  of  expecta- 
tion, to  listen  to  his  speech.  He  began  to  speak,  by  remarking 
that  he  had  been  rebuked  by  one  of  his  colleagues  for  not  announc- 
ing to  this  House,  at  an  earlier  period,  the  death  of  John  Randolph,1 
late  of  Virginia.  He  said,  '  I  must  state  to  the  House  the  reason 
why  I  have  not  before  done  so.'  Here  he  paused,  as  was  his  man- 
ner ;  seemed  much  agitated,  threw  his  head  back,  looked  partly 
round,  then  fell  forward,  and  was  caught  in  the  arms  of  a  member 
before  he  reached  the  floor.  It  was  hoped  by  the  horror-struck 
assembly  that  it  was  only  a  fainting-fit,  but  all  efforts  to  bring  him 
to  life  failed,  and,  after  a  few  convulsive  gasps,  he  expired.  His 
distressed  wife  rushed  from  the  gallery,  but,  before  she  was  able 
to  reach  the  place  where  her  dying  husband  lay,  she  was  carried 
to  another  part  of  the  hall.  Her  shrieks  of  agony  reached  every 
part  of  the  chamber.  I  was  not  in  the  House  at  the  moment,  hav- 
ing gone  to  the  President's,  to  present  a  bill  for  his  signature. 
"When  I  returned,  a  deep  gloom  pervaded  the  whole  multitude 
about  the  Capitol.  I  went  into  the  Speaker's  room,  and  there  saw 
the  lifeless  corpse  of  my  much-esteemed  friend,  with  whom  I  spoke 
the  moment  before  I  left  the  hall  to  go  to  the  President's.2 

"  How  true,  that  '  in  the  midst  of  life  we  are  in  death.'  He  was  a 
man  of  great  ardor  and  warmth  of  feeling.  I  never  heard  him 
speak  when  I  did  not  feel  apprehensive  that  he  might  meet  the 
event  which  has  terminated  his  life  to-day.  He  spoke  with  great 
effort,  and  the  blood  rushed  to  his  face  and  head  as  though  it 
would  burst  through  every  pore.     It  was  a  singular  coincidence, 

1  Mr.  Randolph  was  from  the  district  Judge  B.  represented. 

2  His  daughter  remembers  him  to  have  said  that  he  invited  Judge  Bouldin  to 
stand  at  his  desk  while  he  spoke,  as  it  was  one  of  the  best  localities  for  being 
heard  in  the  hall;  and  he  thought  the  Judge  had  taken  the  place  and  died  there. 


FUNERAL   OF   WILLIAM  WIRT.  121 

that  at  the  very  moment  he  was  speaking  of  the  death  of  his 

friend,  he  should  himself  have  ceased  to  exist.    All  these  lessons 

teach  us  to  be  ready. 

"Always  thine, 

"  G.  N.  Briggs." 

The  funeral  of  that  distinguished  man,  William  Wirt, 
who  died  Feb.  18th,  1834,  is  the  theme  of  the  following 
graphic  letter :  — 

Washington,  21st  Feb.,  1834. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

I  told  you  of  the  death  of  Mr.  "UTirt,  two  or  three  days  since. 
The  funeral  of  the  great  and  good  man  took  place  to-day  at  12 
o'clock.  I  doubt  whether,  since  the  death  of  Washington,  there 
has  been  in  this  country  a  death  which  has  produced  a  grief  so 
universal  and  profound  as  that  now  felt  by  the  people  throughout 
the  republic,  at  the  announcement  of  that  of  this  excellent  and 
upright  man.  While  his  varied,  rich,  and  brilliant  talents  com- 
manded the  respect,  his  bland  and  amiable  manners,  his  benevolent 
and  pious  heart,  won  the  affection  and  esteem  of  all  who  knew  his 
person  and  character.  His  face  was  a  good  index  to  his  character. 
It  was  full  of  mildness  and  intelligence.  His  family  are  spoken  of 
as  sharing  largely  in  the  qualities  of  their  deceased  parent.  Both 
Houses  adjourned  for  the  purpose  of  attending  his  funeral,  —  a 
token  of  respect,  I  understand,  never  before  shown  to  any  private 
citizen  in  this  country.  In  this  case,  it  was  worthy  the  character 
it  was  intended  to  honor. 

I  was  early  at  the  house  where  he  died.  His  family  I  only  saw 
as  they  mournfully  "passed  from  the  house  to  the  carriages  as  they 
moved  away  to  the  tomb 1  saw  none  in  the  multi- 
tude who  exhibited  more  evidence  of  being  deep  and  sincere 
mourners,  than  the  Indians  who  are  delegates  from  the  Cherokees. 
There  were  six  of  them,  and  they  sat,  I  should  think,  an  hour 
before  the  procession  was  formed.  The  gloom  which  deepened 
the  natural  gravity  of  their  dark  and  swarthy  faces,  their  downcast 
looks,  and  total  abstraction  from  everything  that  surrounded 
them,  testified  how  sincerely  and  solemnly  they  participated  in  the 
11 


122  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   ERIGGS. 

sorrows  of  those  who  mourned  the  loss  of  him  whose  death  had 
called  together  such  a  company.  They  lost  in  him  a  professional 
and  national  friend,  —  a  friend  who  in  3-ears  past  has  stood  by  them 
in  the  most  trying  circumstances.  One  of  them  told  me,  last  even- 
ing, that  in  Mr.  Wirt  the  Cherokees  had  lost  their  best  friend. 
There  were  present,  on  this  occasion,  the  President  of  the  United 
States  and  all  his  Cabinet ;  large  numbers  of  both  Houses  of  Con- 
gress ;  all  the  Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court ;  the  most  distin- 
guished members  of  the  bar  from  many  of  the  States ;  several 
foreign  ministers ;  great  numbers  of  private  citizens  of  this  Dis- 
trict, and,  probably,  from  most  of  the  States  of  the  Union.     .    .    . 

In  the  House,  this  morning,  Mr.  Adams  pronounced  a  short 
eulogy  on  the  life  and  character  of  Mr.  Wirt,  of  surprising  ele- 
gance and  beauty When  his  death  was  announced 

to  the  Supreme  Court,  the  verierable  Chief  Justice,  in  a  few  words, 
before  the  adjournment  of  the  court,  paid  a  rich  tribute  to  his 
memory. 

Mr.  Wirt  now  quietly  sleeps  in  the  "house  appointed  for  all  the 
living."  He  is  beyond  the  reach  of  human  praise,  but  his  reputa- 
tion belongs  to  his  country  and  his  race ;  and  now,  as  long  as  virtue 
and  talents  shall  be  honored  and  revered,  his  name  will  be  honored 
and  resplendent  with  glory. 

Love  and  good- will  to  all. 

Ever  thine, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 

The  following  sketch  of  Rev.  T.  R.  Stockton,  at  that 
time,  and  also  at  a  subsequent  period,  the  eloquent  and 
beloved  Chaplain  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  is  a  fit 
and  beautiful  tribute  to  the  character  and  congressional 
service  of  the  man  and  the  minister  :  — 

Washington,  Mar.  9,  1834. 
My  dear  Wd?e  : 

Having,  as  my  custom  is,  attended  public  worship  twice  to-day. 
I  seize  a  moment  to  communicate  with  nry  dearest  earthly  friend. 
Mr.  Stocktons  text  at  the  Capitol  was  in  John  iii.  3:  "Except  a 


TRIBUTE   TO  REV.    W.   R.   STOCKTOX.  12 


Q 


man  be  born  again,  he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  God."  He 
preached  such  a  sermon  as  I  think  should  be  preached  from  that 
most  important  and  interesting  text.  After  showing  what  the  new 
birth  is,  he  proceeded  to  show  its  necessity.  He  described  the 
kingdom  of  God  as  applied  to  the  kingdom  of  grace  here,  and  as 
also  applied  to  the  kingdom  of  glory  in  heaven.  After  giving  a 
most  enrapturing  and  eloquent  description  of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven,  —  its  throne,  its  vast  extent,  its  inhabitants  and  effulgent 
glories,  and  contrasting  its  employments  and  happiness  with  the 
honors,  riches,  and  highest  acquisitions  of  this  world,  he  said  he 
seemed  to  hear  his  audience  say,  "Let  us  leave  this  earth,  and- 
enter  upon  the  glories  of  that  blessed  kingdom.  But  stop,  my 
friends,"  said  he,  "  I  hear  a  voice  from  that  world,  saying,  'Ex- 
cept a  man  be  born  again,  he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  God.'  " 
The  audience  was  very  large  indeed,-  and  the  most  perfect  silence 
and  attention  were  observed  through  the  whole  sermon.  He  is  a 
reformed  Methodist ;  I  judge  from  twenty-six  to  thirty  years  old. 
His  form  is  tall  and  slender.  He  has  on  his  face  the  death-stamp 
of  consumption.  In  prayer,  his  manner  is  drawling  and  too  mo- 
notonous, probably  induced,  in  a  great  measure,  by  the  state  of 
his  health ;  but  when  he  has  proceeded  a  while  in  his  sermon,  he 
becomes  animated,  and  breaks  forth  into  the  most  fervid  and  brill- 
iant strains  of  eloquence  I  have  ever  heard  from  the  pulpit. 
There  is  in  all  his  services  the  deepest  solemnitj',  and,  unlike 
almost  every  other  preacher  I  have  ever  heard  in  the  Hall,  when 
he  preaches  I  have  never  seen  the  least  thing  in  his  manner  or 
language  or  sentiment  that  indicated  a  consciousness  that  he  was 
Chaplain  to  Congress,  or  that  he  was  preaching  in  the  Hall  of  the 
House  of  Representatives.  I  understand  he  sustains  a  character 
without  reproach,  and  his  demeanor  is  meek  and  unassuming. 
This  evening,  Mr. ,  a  Unitarian  minister,  is  to  preach  a  ser- 
mon upon  regeneration.  Those  who  are  more  pleased  with  the 
rationale  of  the  modern  Unitarian  religion  than  with  that  old- 
fashioned  religion  preached  to  Nicodemus  by  our  Saviour,  will 
hear  him.  Those  who  reject  wdiat  we  consider  the  great  truth  of 
religion,  —  I  mean,  the  new  birth,  —  because  they  cannot  under- 
stand the  process  by  the  light  of  reason,  seem  to  forget  that  they 


124  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.    BRIGGS. 

do  not  disbelieve  that  the  wind  blows  when  they  can  neither  see 

it,  nor  "  tell  whence  it  comes,  nor  whither  it  goes.     So,"  says  He 

who  knew,  "  is  every  one  that  is  born  of  God." 

Health  good.    Love  to  all. 

Thine  in  strong  bonds, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  preacher  referred  to  in  the  next  letter  was  one  of  the 
two  clergymen  who  were   sent  out  from  England  in  1833, 
as  a   deputation   to   the  American   churches,    and   whose 
. "  visit "  was  made  the  theme  of  a  popular  volume  :  — 

Washington,  Mar.  11,  1834. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

•  •••«*•• 

Mr.  Reed,  from  London,  preached  this  morning.  He  is  a  man 
of  the  very  first  order  of  talents.  His  text  was  Luke  ix.  56  :  "  For 
the  son  of  man  came  not  to  destroy  men's  lives,  but  to  save  them." 
His  design  was  to  show  the  benevolent  object  of  the  Saviour's 
advent  into  the  world.  This,  he  said,  was  manifest  from  early 
indications  of  the  designs  of  mercy  towards  the  human  family  by 
the  Creator,  as  appears  from  the  first  promises  of  a  Saviour  in  the 
Old  Scriptures.  But,  above  all,  the  benevolent  object  of  his  advent 
appears  in  his  life  and  mission,  in  his  acts  and  death.  He  noticed, 
in  the  most  appropriate  and  touching  manner,  numerous  instances 
of  the  kindness,  mercy,  and  condescension  of  Christ  towards  the 
suffering,  the  needy,  and  the  guilty.  "My  friends,"  said  he,  "the 
Saviour  was  poorer  than  you.  He  was  more  destitute  than  you 
are.  He  was  more  friendless  than  3-ou  are.  His  sorrows  were 
greater,  more  numerous  and  severe  than  yours  are ;  and,  above 
all,  he  died  for  you.  Yes,  the  Saviour  died  for  you.  We  may  suf- 
fer much  and  sacrifice  much  for  our  friends,  —  but  who  would 
die  for  his  friends?  Yet  the  compassionate  Redeemer  died  for  us. 
He  not  only  died  for  us,  but  the  manner  of  his  death  made  it  more 
agonizing  than  any  death  ever  before  or  ever  since  witnessed.  It 
was  not  the  nails  in  his  hands  nor  the  spear  in  his  side  that  killed 
the  Saviour ;  it  was  intense  agony  of  soul  that  terminated  his  life. 
He  suffered  in  intensity  what  we  deserved  to  suffer  eternally." 


REV.  ANDREW  REED.  125 

His  sermon  was  entirely  extemporaneous;  and.  for  purity  of 
style,  and  correctness  and  vigor  of  thought,  deep  pathos,  and 
thrilling  interest.  I  don't  know  that  I  have  ever  heard  it  equalled. 
He  hardly  quoted*!  passage  of  Scripture  to  which  he  did  not  add 
new  and  deeper  interest,  by  his  peculiar  rendering.  To  show  the 
active  and  all-pervading  benevolence  of  the  Saviour,  he  said,  "  He 
went  about  doing  good.  He  did  not  sit  down  and  wait  till  some 
object  of  distress  called  on  him  for  relief,  but,  full  of  mercy,  He 
icent  about  —  doing  good." 

I  would  that  you  could  have  had  the  pleasure  of  sitting  with  me 
and  listening  to  that  admirable  sermon.  I  heard,  last  evening, 
what  was  called  a  most  eloquent  Unitarian  sermon,  in  which  the 
Saviour  was  spoken  of  as  a  person  of  high  moral  attainments  and 
dignity,  and  declared  to  be  nothing  more  than  human,  endowed 
with  great  powers.  His  life  was  represented  as  a  glorious  model, 
calculated  to  raise  men's  opinions  of  their  own  moral  power, 
and  thus  to  lead  them  to  a  course  of  mental  and  moral  improve- 
ment. The  life  of  the  founder  of  the  Christian  religion  was  spoken 
of  as  eminently  calculated  to  raise  the  character  of  man ;  but  he 
was  not  spoken  of  as  the  Saviour  and  Redeemer  of  man.  Xo 
declaration  that  he  died  for  us,  and  purchased  us  with  his  own 
blood,  was  made  to  cheer  the  heart,  and  open  a  way  of  relief  and 
escape  from  the  bondage  of  sin  and  death.  While  others  hailed 
that  sermon  as  the  perfection  of  preaching  and  a  fine  specimen 
of  pulpit  eloquence,  to  me  its  assumptions  destroyed  all  hopes  of 
salvation  for  ruined  man 

Bat  I  am  making  this  letter  too  long. 

Most  affectionately,  thine  own, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 
11* 


CHAPTER    XI. 


CHARACTER  OF  HIS  LIFE  IN  WASHINGTON  —  SOCIAL  NATURE — HOME  IN- 
FLUENCES—A SYMPATHIZING  COLLEAGUE  —  LETTERS  TO  HIS  WIFE- 
LAFAYETTE— LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  —  LETTERS  TO  HIS  WIFE  — AT 
HOME. 


r 
a 


/R.  BRIGGS,  it  will  be  borne  in  mind,  was  a  yoim 
man  when  he  was  first  intrusted  with  the  diary  of 
representing  his  district  in  Congress  ;  and  the 
twelve  years  he  passed  amid  the  allurements  and 
dissipations  of  the  National  Capitol  did  not  quench 
within  him  the  fires  of  mature  manhood.  We  wonder,  per- 
haps, that  he  should  have  kept  himself  so  absolutely  as  he 
did  from  all  the  fascinations  and  follies  which  surrounded 
him,  preserving  in  all  their  freshness  the  religious  scru- 
ples with  which  he  went  to  Washington,  and  keeping  his 
relish  keen  for  everything  pure  and  excellent  and  spiritual. 
This  remarkable  conservation  of  his  early  tastes  is  not 
to  be  explained  upon  the  supposition  that  he  had  no  social 
inclinations,  for  the  reverse  of  this  is  eminently  true  ;  and 
so  fond  was  he  of  genial  companionship,  so  gifted  in  what 
gives  a  zest  to  it,  so  quick  and  affluent  in  his  humor,  so 
ready  and  happy  in  conversational  powers,  that  all  this 
increases  the  marvel  of  his  strict  abstinence  from  the  social 
vices  which  glittered  everywhere  around  him. 

Doubtless  it  was  his  strong  religious  principle  that  kept 
him  thus  "  unspotted  from  the  world  ;  "  but  it  is  impossible 
to  doubt  that  his  persistent  and  unintermitted  communion 


126 


HOME  INFLUENCES.  127 

with  the  loved  ones  at  home  —  with  his  wife  and  children 
—  was  an  efficient  adjunct,  with  the  force  of  religious  char- 
acter, in  giving  him  the  complete  control  of  his  appetites 
and  habits. 

The  influences  of  his  happy  home  atmosphered  him  in 
imagination  at  Washington.  In  his  chamber,  which  was 
described  by  one  who  visited  him  in  it,  as  having  "  a  very 
domestic  look,'"'  he  could  easily  surround  himself  with  the 
forms  and  faces  of  the  absent  ones,  and  this  spiritual  com- 
panionship with  them  was  sweeter  to  him  than  even  the 
innocent  gayeties  of  society. 

His  loving  heart  expended  its  sympathy  and  its  strength 
upon  those  from  whom  he  was  only  materially  separated. 
This  conviction  is  unavoidable  to  one  who  reviews  his  cor- 
respondence with  home.  This  is  indeed  the  most  copious 
source  of  information  concerning  his  unofficial  life  which  is 
accessible  to  the  biographer,  and  it  reflects  broadly,  and 
purely  also,  the  spirit  and  motive  which  controlled  all  his 
acts  on  the  floor  of  Congress. 

He  had,  it  would  seem,  a  colleague  who  sympathized  with 
him  in  his  domestic  attachments,  and  the  following  letter 
presents  both  these  worthy  Congressmen  in  a  very  amiable 
light,  and  gives  assurance  of  their  stability  of  character. 

The  reader  will  find  no  difficulty  in  deciding  that  his 
friend,  Mr.  Hall,  is  the  same  to  whom  reference  was  made 
in  an  earlier  chapter,  and  who  survives  his  friend,  to  bear 
testimony  to  his  excellence  and  nobleness,  and  to  deplore 
his  loss :  — 

Washington,  26  April,  1834. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

Some  time  since,  Mr.  Hall  and  myself  had  a  discussion  upon  the 
most   proper  and   affectionate    soubriquet  by  which  we    should 


128  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

address  our  wives  at  the  commencement  of  our  letters.  I  wag 
inclined  to  use  the  christian  name,  he  to  use  the  term  wife.  He 
argued  that,  as  the  relation  of  husband  and  wife  was  the  most  dear 
and  interesting  in  which  human  beings  could  stand  to  one  another, 
those  who  are  thus  related  ought,  when  they  address  one  another 
by  epistle,  to  use  the  term  which  best  expresses  that  relation.  For 
authority  he  refers  to  the  "  Sketch  Book."  Not  having  read  his  au 
thority,  I  could  say  but  little  about  it ;  but,  at  any  rate,  it  occurred 
tome  that  as  his  author  was  a  bachelor,  he  was  not  exactly  the 
chap  to  dictate  to  me  how  to  address  my  wife.  For  this  reason 
his  authority  did  not  appear  to  me  to  be  entirely  conclusive,  and 
upon  general  reasoning,  though  I  yield  to  the  argument  deduced 
from  the  charm  of  the  little  wife,  especially  to  all  such  as  love  their 
wives  as  they  ought,  still  I  cannot  get  rid  of  the  impression  that  I 
loved  her  who  is  now  my  wife  by  a  name  she  bore  before  that  cog- 
nomen was  applied  to  her.     This  impression  abiding,  when  I  sit 

down  to  write,  I  begin  my  dear Harriet.     The  name  of  the 

loved  maiden  will  always  crowd  into  my  mind  before  the  word 
wife.  But  he  accidentially  let  out  a  fact  which  I  cannot  help  be- 
lieving has,  at  least,  some  influence  in  forming  his  strong  attach- 
ment to  the  use  of  the  connubial  title,  if  it  does  not  form  the 
controlling  motive.  "  Now,"  said  he,  "  how  would  it  look  for  me  to 
begin  my  letters  with  '  my  dear  Dolly?'"  "Ah!"  said  I,  "my 
dear  fellow,  there's  the  rub,  — it  is  that  Dolly  that  creates  your 
aversion,  and  not  the  word  wife,  to  which  you  are  so  strongly 
attached."  Now  he  would  not  admit,  of  course,  that  I  had  hit  upon 
the  very  thing,  but  he  went  to  thinking  upon  the  subject,  and  I  do 
not  discover  that  he  is  very  anxious  to  revive  the  discussion.  I 
hold  that  any  man  who  has  so  excellent  a  wife  as  he  has,  should 
never  entertain  the  least  prejudice  against  her  name.  On  the  con- 
trary, a  man  who  has  been  so  fortunate  as  to  win  a  good  wife  is 
bound  to  believe  that  everything  about  her  (except  snuff-taking) 
is  the  best  that  possibly  could  be.  The  thing  is  settled.  I  have  just 
read  to  him  thus  far,  and  he  says :  "  It  is  a  fact,  it  is  the  meanest 
name  ever  given  to  a  girl."  After  all,  there  is  one  circumstance  that  * 
cannot  have  escaped  your  notice,  and  which  will  not  go  very  far  to 
establish  the  influence  which  my  own  argument  has  had  upon  my 


HOME-SIC KXESS.  Il9 

mind,  and  that  is,  that  ever  since  I  had  the  conversation  with  him 
I  have.  I  believe,  commenced  my  letters  to  you  with  his  favor- 
ite address.  Still,  it  is  one  of  the  most  common  things  in  life 
for  our  practice  to  contradict  our  doctrine.  I  will  not  admit  that 
my  argument  is  unsound. 

P.  S.  Mr.  H-dl  wishes  me  to  say  to  you,  that  it  seems  I  am  will- 
ing to  adopt  his  rule,  though  I  insist  on  my  own  reasons. 

Here,  as  in  many  of  his  letters,  the  home-sickness  — 
that  malady  of  which  no  man  need  be  ashamed  —  displays 
itself  in  unmistakable  symptoms  :  — 

Sunday  evening. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

A  most  beautiful  day  has  just  passed  away,  and  the  last  rays  of 
the  departing  sun  are  tinging  with  red  the  clouds  which  hang  over 
the  western  horizon.  Whilst  strolling  among  the  scattered  houses 
of  the  northern  part  of  the  city,  and  seeing  mothers  and  their  chil- 
dren sitting  in  their  doors  and  on  their  piazzas,  what  do  you  think 
a  poor  fellow,  four  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  the  beloved  of  his 
heart, -and  the  children  of  his  and  her  affection,  thought  of?  I 
imagine,  now  that  the  evening  is  closing  in  upon  me,  that,  in  the 
old  Boro'  castle,  our  excellent  and  dear  mother  sits  with  her  Bible 
in  her  lap,  and  her  aching  head  resting  upon  her  hand,  pondering 
over  a  life  which  has  been  full  of  incident.  While  she  feels  many 
sorrows  and  apprehensions  of  mind,  her  soul  is  solaeed  with  hope, 
and  she  looks  forward  to  the  cheering  prospect  when  the  consola- 
tions which  are  promised  in  the  blessed  volume,  will  be  hers.  Her 
daughter  sits  at  the  south  window  in  the  dining-room,  looking  out 
as  far  as  the  twilight  will  permit,  upon  the  beautiful  view  that 
spreads  itself  to  the  eye ;  and  while  a  lonely  feeling  steals  over  her, 
she  sends  a  thought  to  the  far-off  south  and 

The  remaining  details  of  the  home  picture,  sketched  in 
this  letter,  so  fondly  drawn,  may  be  inappropriate  for  the 
public  eye  ;  but  to  those  familiar  with  them  they  are  dear, 


130  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

and  present  in  memory  a  vision  of  an  earthly  house  only 
less  bright  than  that  vision  which  faith  and  hope  afford  of 
our  ;;  Father's  house  "   and  •'  many  mansions  "  in  the  heav- 

at 

enly  world. 

The  magnificent  tribute  of  John  Quincy  Adams  to  the 
memory  of  Lafayette,  is  admirably  characterized  in  the 
following  letter :  — 

Washington,  31st  December,  1831. 
My  dear  "Wife  : 

We  have  had  a  great  day  at  the  Capitol.  At  the  close  of  the  last 
session,  Mr.  Adams  was  appointed  by  both  Houses  of  Congress 
to  pronounce  a  eulogy  upon  the  character  of  Lafayette.  Some  time 
since,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  appoint  a  day  and  make  ar- 
rangements for  the  occasion.  To-dav  both  Houses  met.  but  no 
business  was  done  except  to  read  the  journals.  At  half  past  twelve 
the  Senators,  accompanied  by  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
and  his  Cabinet  Ministers,  entered  the  Hall  of  Representatives. 
The  lobbies  of  the  House  were  filled  with  ladies,  and  the  galleries 
with  multitudes  who  had  assembled  to  witness  the  ceremonies  of 
the  day.  Mr.  Adams  ascended  to  the  Speaker's  place  and  com- 
menced his  oration,  which  occupied  within  a  few  minutes  of  three 
hours  in  the  delivery.  It  was  a  wonderful  performance.  The  im- 
mense multitude  listened  with  most  profound  attention  and  still- 
ness during  the  whole  time.  It  has  more  than  sustained  the 
reputation  of  this  great  man  as  a  statesman  and  writer.  As  he 
progressed  with  the  subject,  the  attention  of  the  audience  increased 
and  the  profoundest  silence  pervaded  the  great  multitude  which 
surrounded  the  speaker,  until  the  moment  he  ceased  speaking, 
when  the  silence  was  broken  by  the  deafening  applause  which 
broke  forth  in  acknowledgment  of  the  commanding  powers  of  the 
orator,  and  his  masterly  treatment  of  the  subject.  It  would  be 
difficult  to  say  whether,  in  this  single  performance,  he  erected  the 
most  enduring  monument  for  himself,  or  to  the  great  and  good 
man  whose  eulogy  he  pronounced.  The  oration  will  be  published, 
and  I  will  send  you  a  copy.     .     .     . 

Thine  own, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 


LETTER    TO   HIS   DAUGHTER.  131 

He  took  a  great  interest  in  his  daughter's  reading,  and 
directed  her  choice  of  books,  and  her '  habits  of  studying 
them,  with  great  assiduity  :  — 

Washington,  December  31,  1S34. 
My  dear  Cuild  : 

I  suppose  you  are  studying  hard  this  winter I  don't 

know  whether  you  will  find  it  profitable  or  not  to  go  through  in 
detail  with  the  "  Polynesian  Researches."  Though  there  are  many 
things  of  interest  in  them,  yet  there  is  such  minuteness  of  detail, 
of  matters  and  things  of  not  much  consequence,  I  should  hardly 
think  it  worth  while  to  read  them  systematically.  They  will  do 
better  for  occasional  reading,  as  there  is  not  such  a  dependence  of 
one  part  upon  another,  as  to  make  it  necessary  to  read  them  in 
coarse.  Before  I  left  home  you  had  commenced  reading  Marshall's 
"Life  of  Washington."  I  should  prefer  to  have  you  go  through  with 
that  work  now  with  care  and  attention.  I  am  reading  Gibbon's  "  De- 
cline and  Tall  of  the  Roman  Empire."  I  make  it  my  rule,  in  addi- 
tion to  my  other  miscellaneous  reading,  and  my  attendance  in  the 
House,  and  on  committees,  and  on  other  public  business,  to  dis- 
patch a  hundred  pages  a  day.  There  are  six  volumes  of  more  than 
five  hundred  pages  each.  I  am  through  with  three  volumes  and  shall 
commence  the  fourth  on  Monday  morning.  I  want  you  to  be  in  the 
regular  habit  of  reading  every  day  in  addition  to  your  studies ;  and 
do  it  attentively  and  thoroughly,  that  it  may  make  a  lasting  im- 
pression on  your  mind.  I  trust  you  will  spend  a  portion  of  each 
day  of  your  life  in  religious  reading  —  reading  in  the  Bible  and 
other  books. 

•  ••••••• 

The  funeral  of  Mr. ,  of  whose  death  I  informed  you  last  even- 
ing, took  place  at  twelve  o'clock  to-day  in  the  Capitol.  Immedi- 
ately after  the  conclusion  of  the  services  in  the  Representatives' 
Hall,  a  most  desperate  and  fiend-like  attempt  was  made  to  assassin- 
ate the  President  of  the  United  States.  The  members  had  fol- 
lowed the  remains  of  the  deceased  from  the  Hall  through  the  great 
Rotunda  of  the  Capitol  out  of  the  eastern  front.  When  they  had 
all  passed  out,  just  as  the  President,  at  the  aide  of  Mr.  Woodbnry, 


132  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   ER1GGS. 

■ 

the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  had  passed  out  of  the  cast  door  of 
the  Rotunda  into  the  Portico,  a  man  stepped  before  them,  and 
drawing  a  pistol,  pointed  it  at  the  breast  of  the  President,  and 
snapped  it.  The  percussion-cap  exploded,  but  the  pistol  did  not  go 
off.  They  both  rushed  towards  the  desperado,  and  when  Mr. 
Woodbury  was  about  to  take  him  by  the  collar,  and  the  President 
to  lift  his  arm  upon  him,  he  drew  and  aimed  another  pistol  at  the 
President,  and  it  snapped  as  the  other  had.  At  this  moment 
another  gentleman  knocked  the  assassin  down,  and  he  was  in- 
stantly secured.  Both  pistols  were  heavily  loaded  with  powder 
and  ball.  An  interposing  Providence  prevented  the  dreadful 
tragedy.  No  one  can  give  any  reason  for  the  terrible  act.  It 
is  said  by  some  that  this  individual  has  had  turns  of  insanity, 
and  has  made  a  similar  attempt  to  murder  his  sister's  husband. 
On  his  examination,  it  is  said,  he  exhibited  no  signs  of  insanity. 
He  is  an  Englishman,  but  has  been  long  in  this  country ;  is  from 
twent}--five  to  thirty  years  old,  —  a  printer  by  trade,  and  has  lived 
in  the  city  about  three  years.  His  name  is  Richard  Lawrence.  It 
is  said  he  exhibited  no  anxiety  or  uneasiness  at  his  examination. 
He  told  the  keeper  the  reason  of  his  attempt  was  that  the  General 
had  killed  his  father.  Of  course,  there  was  no  pretence  for  this. 
His  father  died  a  natural  death,  as  is  said,  many  years  ago.  I 
hope,  for  the  honor  of  human  nature  and  our  country,  it  will  turn 
out  that  he  is  crazy.  I  cannot  account  for  his  rash,  wicked,  and 
desperate  attempt  on  any  other  supposition. 

The  transaction  produced  a  most  horrifying  shock  in  this  city, 
as  it  will  throughout  the  nation.  The  desperado  is  well  secured 
in  jail,  to  await  his  trial.  The  old  hero  conducted  himself  with ' 
great  firmness ;  though,  with  all  who  were  present,  he  was 
shocked  and  excited  by  the  desperate  deed.  He  soon  walked 
down  the  steps  to  his  carriage,  and  rode  to  his  mansion. 

Thus,  I  have  told  you  all  the  circumstances  of  this  most  extraor- 

dinary  and  murderous  attempt  on  the  life  of  the  Chief  Magistrate. 

If  anything  new  turns  up,  I  will  write  you  about  it.     I  was  not 

present  myself.     Love  to  all. 

Affectionately  thine, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 


LETTERS    TO   HIS    WIFE.  133 

The  first  memorial  of  Mr.  Briggs  for  the  }rear  1835,  is 
a  brief  letter  to  his  wife,  in  reply  to  her  New  Year's  greet- 
ing, with  the  thoughtful  tone  of  which  it  is  in  harmony  :  — 

Washington,  January  7,  1835. 
My  dear  "Wife  : 

Yours  of  the  2d  inst.  was  received  this  morning.  Your  reflec- 
tions on  the  commencement  of  the  New  Year  are  such  as  the  occa- 
sion should  suggest.  The  fleeting  years,  as  they  pass  away,  will 
soon  bring  us  to  our  last,  when,  if  we  are  not  sensible  of  it  before, 
we  shall  deeply  feel  the  value  of  time,  and  realize  the  importance 
of  a  right  improvement  of  it.  The  countless  mercies  we  are  con- 
stantly receiving  from  the  hand  of  our  Heavenly  Father,  deserve 
our  gratitude  and  our  obedience  to  His  laws.  We  ought  to  render 
that  gratitude  and  yield  that  obedience.  May  we  be  wise  for  the 
future,  redeem  the  past,  and  still  be  the  recipients  of  His  bless- 
ings  

A  few  days  later  he  writes  :  — 

January  22,  1835. 

.  .  .  .  Soon  after  I  went  to  the  House  this  morning  I  found 
that  Mr.  Wise,  a  member  from  Virginia,  had  gone  over  into  Mary- 
land to  fight  a  duel  with  a  Mr.  Coke,  formerly  a  member  from  the 
same  State.  About  two  o'clock  we  learned  that  they  had  exchanged 
shots,  that  Mr.  Coke  fell  wounded,  but  Wise  was  not  hit.  The 
wound  of  Coke  is  not  severe.  Such  an  occurrence  is  a  deep  re- 
proach to  an  American  Congress.  It  is  surprising  that  the  spirit 
of  the  age  does  not  stamp  with  reprobation  this  barbarous  relic  of 
savage  nations.  Until  it  shall  cease  to  be  honorable  for  men  to 
turn  murderers  to  vindicate  their  manhood,  we  shall  not  deserve 
the  name  or  the  blessings  of  a  Christian  people 

He  thus  playfully  takes  his  excellent  wife  to  task  for  in- 
dulging in  needless  apprehensions  about  his  health  and  life 
in  his  absence  from  home  :  — 

12 


134  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

Washington  February  1,  1835. 

How  exceedingly  vain  and  foolish  it  would  be  in 

one  to  lie  awake  all  night,  when  he  was  warm  and  comfortable,  in 
the  apprehension  that  to-morrow  night  it  would  be  so  cold  that  he 
could  not  sleep ! 

What  a  serious  loss  it  would  be  for  one  to  deprive  himself  of 
the  pleasure  of  a  breakfast  of  fine,  light,  nicely-fried  buckwheat 
cakes,  all  garnished  with- yellow  butter  and  maple  molasses,  from 
the  pitiful  imagining  that  next  year  the  buckwheat  would  all  be  cut 
off,  or  the  maple-trees  would  run  no  sap !  Is  it  not  equally  unfor- 
tunate, if  not  as  unreasonable,  for  a  likely,  sensible,  blue-eyed 
woman,  whose  husband  happens  to  be  in  Congress  — when  she  is  in 
tolerable  health  with  three  rosy  children  about,  and  as  mauy  of  the 
comforts  of  life  as  a  poor  man's  wife  has  a  right  to  expect ;  and 
who,  from  three  to  half-a-dozen  times  a  week,  has  news  of  the  wel 
fare  of  her  absent  husband  by  letters,  which  continue  to  tell  her  how 
hard  he  loves  her  and  what  an  excellent  wife  she  is ;  I  say,  is  it  not 
a  pity  that  she  should  permit  her  present  enjoyment  to  be  marred 
by  the  forebodings  of  future  evil,  or  the  idle  suggestions  of  fears 
growing  out  of  dreams,  or  some  other  sources  equally  unsubstan- 
tial?    .... 

A  week  later  he  chronicles  the  state  of  the  weather  as 
being  unusual,  and  gives  us  a  picture  of  himself  airing  his 
court  suit  of  home-made  clothes  :  — 

Washington,  January  29,  1835. 
My  dear  Wife: 

The  weather  here  for  the  last  fortnight  has  been  such,  I  think,  as 
I  have  never  known  for  that  length  of  time  in  January.  It  is  much 
more  like  an  early  April.  I  am  sorrj-  it  is  not  colder,  for  such  out- 
of-season  weather  is  not  agreeable  to  me.  I  have  had  no  letter 
from  you  for  some  time ;  why  not  ?  I  hope  }'ou  are  not  tipping 
your  ribbons  among  the  beaux  of  Berkshire.  I  assure  you  I  have 
bceu  remarkably  domestic  this  winter.  Occasionally  I  put  on  my 
claret  suit  and  march  out,  but  it  is  merely  to  keep  the  set  and 
hang  of  my   clothes,    and  not  to  make  an  impression  upon  the 


AT  HOME.  135 

fair  of  the  metropolis,  of  whom  I  am  about  as  ignorant  as  if  I  had 
remained  in  the  Boro' 

The  long  vacation  of  this  year  was  passed  by  the  Repre- 
sentative at  h6me,  in  diligent  devotion  to  the  business  of 
his  profession,  which  was  not  by  any  means  set  aside, 
be}Tond  the  necessity  of  the  case,  by  his  absence  during 
the  winters. 

He  had  no  idle  time  —  not  even  when  he  was  whipping 
the  waters  of  the  trout-brooks  around  his  home ;  for  even 
then  his  mind  was  often  busy,  and  he  was  doing  needful 
work  with  it,  or  giving  it  no  less  needful  repose.  Temper- 
ance speeches,  attendance  upon  religious  gatherings,  and 
other  incidental  occupations,  filled  up  all  the  intervals  he 
did  not  devote  to  his  business. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

TWENTY-FOURTH  CONGRESS  — HIS  ESTIMATE  OF  POPULAR  FAVOR  —  A  CON- 
TRAST OF  PREACHERS  —  ROBERT  HALL  —  OPINION  OF  HENRY  CLAY  —  A 
CONSERVATIVE  LETTBR  —  LETTER  FROM  ELDER  LELAND  —  LETTERS  TO 
HIS  WIFE  —  WASHINGTON  MANNERS  —  SABBATH  SESSION  OF  CONGRESS 
—  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  —  FATHER  TAYLOR. 

T  the  opening  of  the  first  session  of  the  Twenty-fourth 
Congress,  Mr.  Briggs  was  in  his  chair,  more  than 
ever  assured  of  the  confidence  and  favor  of  his  con- 
stituents, and  certainly  no  less  resolved  to  be  wor- 
thy of  it,  by  a  conscientious  discharge  of  every  duty 
of  his  position  as  their  Representative. 

He  thus  chronicles  his  return  to  the  scenes  and  occupa- 
tions with  which  four  years'  experience  had  made  him  fa- 
miliar :  — 

Washington,  December  1,  1835. 
My  dear  "Wife: 

I  have  set  myself  down  in  my  old  quarters,  where  I  have  passed 
four  years  of  congressional  life.  I  have  been  rather  solitary  for 
the  last  two  days.  Sometimes  I  would  half  make  up  my  mind  to 
quit  and  run  home ;  but  when  I  remember  that  at  home,  when  a 
fit  of  the  blues  came  on,  I  would  feel  like  running  away  from  them 
even  there,  I  was  considerably  quieted 

I  should  be  stupid  and  ungrateful  if  I  did  not  properly  appreciate 
the  consideration  and  regard  which  a  generous  people  have  shown 
me  by  sending  me  here,  but  I  mistake  myself  if  the  name  has  much 
value  in  it,  in  my  estimation. 

I  desire  the  gooct-will,  respect,  and  esteem  of  my  fellow-men, 

136 


A    CONTRAST  OF  PREACHERS.  137 

and  I  desire  more  to  deserve  these.  This  I  would  do  by  being  use- 
ful to  them,  and  by  properly  discharging  every  duty  of  my  life.  Of 
this,  I  know,  I  come  short ;  but  if  I  have  ambition,  it  lies  here.    . 

I  called  to-day  at  Dr.  Lindsly's,  and  found  them  all  well;  was 
welcomed  by  them  as  though  they  were  glad  to  see  me. 

The  residence  of  Dr.  Lindsly,  to  whom  allusion  is  made 
here,  was  a  social  centre  of  attraction  for  many  of  the  chief 
men  in  Congress,  who  frequently  shared  in  its  genial  and 
generous  hospitalities.  Here  Mr.  Briggs  found  a  home  and 
those  sympathies  which  served  to  cheer  him  in  his  unwel- 
come exile  from  his  own  family  circle.  Here,  also,  he 
formed  a  friendship  for  the  estimable  family  of  Dr.  Lindsly, 
which  is  inherited  and  perpetuated  by  his  children. 

Under  the  date  of  December  20,  1835,  he  writes  again  to 
his  wife,  describing  a  preacher  whom  he  heard  that  morn- 
ing at  the  Capitol,  and  of  whom  he  says, — 

"  I  know  not  of  what  denomination  he  is ;  but  in  my  estimation 
he  made  poor  work  at  preaching.  His  aim  seemed  to  be  to  convince 
his  audience  of  the  folly  of  being  distressed  by  apprehensions  of 
death.  He  seemed  to  take  it  for  granted  that,  at  death,  all  would 
enter  upon  a  state  of  happiness,  for  he  could  not  believe  that  God 
would  send  rational  beings  into  this  world  to  make  them  worse  off 
in  the  next.  He  did  not  intimate  that  the  condition  of  men, 
here  or  hereafter,  has  any  connection  with  their  conduct." 

Later  in  the  letter  he  continues  :  — 

"  Since  meeting  I  have  read,  with  great  pleasure,  two  sermons 
of  the  late  Robert  Hall.  He  was  a  most  extraordinary  man  and 
preacher.  His  mind  was  of  the  highest  order.  He  was  richly  and 
profoundly  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  the  gospel.  His  style  is 
beautiful  and  forcible.  He  presents  the  great  truths  which  relate 
to  the  salvation  of  the  soul,  in  the  most  striking  and  impressive 
manner. 

12* 


138  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

"  '  What,'  says  he,  '  my  brethren,  if  we  may  indulge  such  3 
thought ;  what  would  be  the  funeral  obsequies  of  a  lost  soul  ? 
Would  it  be  possible  for  nature  to  utter  a  groan  too  deep  or  a  cry 
too  piercing  to  express  the  magnitude  and  terror  of  such  a  catasr 
trophe  ? ' 

"  How  awful  and  momentous  are  such  thoughts  and  language 
in  contrast  to  the  tinselled  frippery  of  such  preachers  as  the  one 
I  first  mentioned." 

The  admiration  of  Mr.  Briggs  for  the  character  and  pub- 
lic life  of  Henry  Clay  is  frequently  expressed  in  his  cor- 
respondence ;  but  perhaps  at  no  particular  time  more  at 
length  than  in  a  letter  to  his  wife  written  during  this  ses- 
sion, and  upon  the  occasion  of  Mr.  Cla}T's  resumption  of  his 
seat  in  the  Senate,  after  the  affliction  he  experienced  in  the 
sudden  death  at  Lexington,  Ky.,  of  his  only  and  much-loved 
dauo-hter  :  — 

Washington,  December  29,  1835. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

This  morning  I  went  into  the  Senate,  and  soon  after  I  got  there, 
Mr.  Clay  rose  to  introduce  a  bill  to  distribute  the  avails  of  the  pub- 
lic lands,  and  made  a  beautiful  speech  of  about  an  hour.  He  has 
not  been  in  the  Senate  for  about  two  weeks.  The  melancholy  news 
of  the  very  sudden  death  of  his  only  daughter,  at  Lexington,  has 
kept  him  entirely  secluded.  When  he  arose  he  alluded  to  his  deep 
domestic  affliction ;  which,  he  said  was  the  most  severe  that  had 
ever  visited  him,  and  was  much  affected.  The  whole  of  his  speech 
was  in  a  mild,  subdued  tone.  He  said,  in  conclusion,  that  he 
looked  with  satisfaction  to  the  period  when  he  should  leave  public 
life  and  go  into  the  quiet  and  peaceful  retirement  of  private  life. 
He  said,  when  he  looked  back  upon  his  past  life,  and  remembered 
his  humble  origin,  he  had  much  reason  to  be  satisfied  with  the 
many  marks  of  distinction  and  honor  that  his  countrymen  had  con- 
ferred upon  him;  and  he  was  grateful  for  all  their  favors.  He  had 
the  satisfaction  of  reflecting  that  he  had  always  endeavored  to  do 
his  duty,  in  every  station  to  which  he  had  been  appointed.    He  said 


HIS    OPINION  OF  HEXRY  CLAY.  139 

he  was  early  left  an  orphan,  that  he  could  not  recollect  when  the 
tender  solicitude  and  care  of  a  father  had  been  exercised  over  him. 
He  was  left  to  the  care  of  a  widowed  mother,  in  charge  of  a  large 
family  of  children,  without  fortune  and  without  education,  or  the 
means  of  obtaining  it. 

He  alluded  to  his  origin  and  history  in  such  a  sincere,  simple 
manner,  and  spoke  in  such  sweet,  musical  tones  of  voice,  all  under 
the  influence  of  the  melancholy  induced  by  the  deep  affliction 
under  which  he  was  borne  down,  that  the  effect  upon  the  large  and 
listening  audience  surrounding  him  was  very  striking ;  many  eyes 
were  filled  with  tears,  and  all  around  the  Senate  Chamber,  both 
among  the  Senators  and  spectators,  many  heads  were  bent,  and 
many  handerchiefs  were  suddenly  lifted  to  wipe  away  the  falling 
tears.  Never,  in  this  country,  has  a  man  done  such  signal  services, 
and  met  such  ungrateful  return,  as  Henry  Clay.  I  doubt  not  pos- 
terity will  do  him  ample  justice,  and  give  his  great  name  a  place 
high  among  the  renowned.  But  bitter  indeed  must  be  the  reflec- 
tions of  a  high-souled  and  noble-minded  patriot,  who  feels  con- 
scious of  having  devoted  his  life  to  the  good  of  his  country,  when 
he  sees  that  country  enjoying  the  golden  fruits  of  his  labors  and 
toil,  turning  from  him,  not  only  with  cold  and  heartless  ingrati- 
tude, but  doing  all  in  her  power  to  cover  him  with  obloquy  and 
shame. 

But  if  I  don't  stop  you  will  begin  to  believe  me  a  Clay  man.    It 

will  be  one  of  the  most  interesting  reminiscences  of  my  life  that  it 

has  fallen  to  my  humble  lot  to  have  mingled  in  the  public  councils 

with  Henry  Clay,  and  that  I  have  listened  to  his  warm,  thrilling,  and 

patriotic  eloquence. 

Thine  own, 

G.  X.  Briggs. 

The  justice  and  kindness  of  the  sentiments  which  inspired 
the  mind  and  prompted  the  utterances  of  Mr.  Briggs  upon 
all  points  in  which  the  North  and  South  were  in  conflict, 
are  in  striking  contrast  to  the  relentlessness  and  reckless- 
ness of  some  whose  intemperate  speeches  "fired  the 
Southern  heart "  to  hatred  of  the  North. 


MO  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

The  following  letter  to  his  family  physician  is  an  exam- 
ple of  his  conservatism  and  good-will :  — 

Washington,  8th  January,  1836. 
Dear  Tyler: 

As  Congress  adjourned  over  yesterday  till  Monday  next,  thus 
giving  us  lazy  dogs  three  days  of  leisure,  I  should  like  to  improve  it 
by  running  in  to  see  how  you  all  gang  in  the  Boro'.  But  four  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  is  too  long  a  stride  for  a  poor  short-legged  fellow 
to  take  in  so  short  a  time.  The  sun  has  not  looked  out  upon  us 
for  a  week,  and  how  much  longer  he  will  keep  muffied  up  in  thick 
clouds  I  know  not.  Both  Houses  of  Congress  have  got  deeply 
into  the  slave  question,  arising  from  petitions  to  abolish  slavery, 
and  the  slave  trade,  in  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  Southern 
members  are  making  a  bold  push  to  force  the  North  to  admit  that 
Congress  has  no  power  oyer  the  subject  of  slavery  in  the  District 
of  Columbia.  The  miserable  business  of  President-making  will 
give  them  many  Northern  votes  on  many  questions  arising  about 
the  subject,  but  I  trust  the  Eepresentatives  from  the  free  States  of 
the  North  are  not  yet  slaves  enough  to  give  up  the  constitutional 
right  of  Congress  to  legislate  in  this  District.  But  while  the  con- 
stitutional power  is  adhered  to  with  firmness  and  decision,  I  think, 
both  here  and  at  home,  we  ought  in  every  way  in  our  power  to 
manifest  to  our  Southern  brethren,  our  unalterable  determination 
to  respect  their  constitutional  rights,  and  never  attempt  any  inter- 
ference with  the  institution  of  slavery  within  the  limits  of  the 
States.  It  is  altogether  a  subject  of  extreme  delicacy  and  impor- 
tance. We  of  the  North  are  not  fully  aware,  I  am  satisfied,  of  the 
true  condition  of  things  in  many  parts  of  the  South.  From  the 
course  of  things  in  the  Northern  free  States  within  the  last  year 
or  two,  the  Southern  people  are  fearfully  apprehensive  that  an  in- 
terference with  their  affairs,  unauthorized  by  the  Constitution,  is 
intended,  and  that  the  attempt  to  act  on  the  subject  in  the  District 
of  Columbia  is  meant  only  as  an  entering  wedge  to  act  upon  the 
same  thing  in  the  States.  I  think,  in  the  course  which  they  take, 
they  are  unreasonable  and  indiscreet.  I  know  not  but  this  is  the 
rock  on  which  this  noble  Union,  the  work  of  the  best  patriots  and 


ELDER  L  EL  AND.  141 

the  wisest  Statesmen,  is  destined  to  split.  But  what  if  the  Union 
is  divided  ?  The  severest  blow  ever  given  to  liberty  will  be  struck, 
and  not  a  solitary  suffering  slave  will  be  liberated.  This  is  an  age 
of  excitement,  benevolence,  and  innovation,  more  remarkable  for 
feeling  and  action  than  for  deliberate  and  cool  judgment.  I  hope 
all  may  be  overruled  for  good.  At  present,  clouds  dark  and  bod- 
ing hang  over  our  political  horizon. 

Your  friend, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  subjoined  letter  from  Elder  Leland1  is  so  pointed 
and  characteristic,  that  it  cannot  fail  to  be  read  with  pleas- 
ure. Its  sentiments  of  wisdom  and  vigor  of  thought,  make 
it  quite  as  applicable  in  many  respects  to  passing  events,  as 
to  those  to  which  they  were  originally  directed  :  — 

Cheshire,  January  12,  1836. 
Hon.  Sir  : 

I  am  confident  you  will  have  the  goodness  to  pass  by  any  im- 
prudence in  my  attempt  to  write  to  one  highly  elevated  by  his 
country.  I  aim  not  at  high  things ;  my  head  is  not  formed  for  the 
cap  of  honor ;  but  the  good  of  that  country  which  has  given  me 
birth,  and  has  nourished  me  more  than  eighty  jTears,  lies  near  my 
heart.  Next  to  the  salvation  of  the  soul,  I  have  advocated  a 
scheme  which  would  support  the  energy  of  the  Government,  and 
secure  the  rights  of  the  people.  The  given  powers  of  the  Govern- 
ment (in  which  you  are  now  acting  as  legislator)  are  few  and 
defined.  The  powers  granted  and  rights  retained  are  so  plainly 
stated  in  the  Charter,  that  those  who  read  may  understand.  But 
where  honest  men  are  agreed  in  the  fundamental  principles,  they 
may  widely  differ  in  the  agents  and  secondary  agents,  which  would 
be  the  most  likely  to  establish  those  principles. 

l  Rev.  John  Leland,  a  distinguished  Baptist  minister  who  spent  many  year? 
of  a  long  life  in  Cheshire,  Mass.,  and  with  whom  the  subject  of  this  Memoir 
cherished  intimate  relations.  The  reader  is  referred  to  Dr.  Sprague's  "  Annals 
of  the  American  (Baptist)  Pulpit "  for  a  long  and  interesting  letter  from  Gov. 
Briggs,  in  which  he  includes  his  personal  reminiscences  and  impressions  of  his 
quaint  clerical  friend. 


142  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  K.  BRIGGS. 

It  seems  probable  that  the  admission  of  Michigan  into  the  Union ; 
the  French  question ;  the  circulation  of  the  writings  of  the  aboli- 
tionists ;  the  disposal  of  the  surplus  revenue ;  will  occupy  some  cf 
your  time.  The  expunging  of  senatorial  foolery  will  not  be  ham- 
mered in  your  shop ;  but  in  the  Senate  chamber  it  is  likely  the  fur- 
nace will  be  blown  seven  times  hotter  than  usual,  to  kill  that  which 
never  did  any  harm;  the  death  of  which  will  never  bequeath  a  pair 
of  shoes  to  a  child,  or  an  ear  of  corn  to  a  pig.  Should  the  record 
of  the  resolution  of  censure  be  expunged  by  a  line  drawn  across  it, 
as  black  as  Tophet,  it  would  not  change  the  mind  of  any  man 
any  more  than  the  passing  of  the  resolution  did. 

In  the  time  of  the  revolution  in  England,  it  became  a  proverbial 
saying:  "  Strip  a  man  of  office  and  he  will  talk  like  a  Whig;  put 
him  in  office  and  he  will  be  a  Tory."  It  is  too  true  that  when  men 
possess  power  they  forget  right,  every  man  having  a  Pope  in  his 
belly ;  but  true  patriotism  will  rope  the  Pope,  and  cause  the  patriot 
to  seek  the  good  of  his  country  (of  all  the  world),  and  not  his  own 
aggrandizement. 

According  to  our  political  calendar,  this  present  year  is  leap  year, 
the  thirteenth  bissextile  of  our  Government.  It  is  therefore  prob- 
able that  there  will  be  some  leaping  in  Washington  this  session ; 
and  pray,  how  could  the  leisure  hours  of  the  members  of  Congress 
be  better  spent,  than  in  devising  means  for  the  good  of  the  country 
for  the  four  succeeding  years?  Whether  the  Committee  of  Ways 
and  Means,  appointed  for  the  purpose  of  nominating  and  recom- 
mending a  candidate  for  the  next  term,  are  likely  to  agree  and 
report  a  bill,  I  do  not  know.  My  ardent  desire  is  that  there  may 
be  a  fair  expression  of  the  will  of  the  people  in  the  choice  of  the 
eighth  President ;  if  so,  who  ever  he  be,  I  will  acknowledge  him 
as  my  President,  whether  he  is  the  man  of  my  choice  or  not ;  for 
in  this  case  and  all  cases  like  it,  "  voxpopuli  vox  Dei "  is  a  religious 
and  admitted  truth. 

Representatives  are  not  sent  to  Congress  to  think  for  their  con- 
stituents, but  to  act  for  them  (the  right  of  thinking  being  inalien- 
able in  its  nature),  and  he  who  acts  contrary  to  the  known  will 
of  the  majority  of  his  constituents  is  a  tyrant.  When  a  question 
must  be  acted  upon,  and  the  representative  cannot  in  conscience 


LETTERS   TO  BIS  WIFE.  143 

vote  for  that  which  he  knows  is  the  will  of  a  majority  of  his  con- 
stituents, it  becomes  him  to  tender  his  resignation,  and  let  another 
fill  his  place.  Mr.  Adams  formerly,  and  Mr.  Reeves  recently, 
acted  wisely  on  this  true  principle  of  Republicanism,  in  the  Senate, 
and  Col.  Johnson  did  the  same  thing,  in  substance,  in  the  Compen- 
sation Bill,  in  the  House. 

I  learn  from  the  newspapers  that  you  are  on  the  Committee  of 
the  Post  Office  and  Post  Roads.  This  institution  has  grown  to  be 
a  giant ;  and  I  believe  that  it  is  as  much  abused  as  any  establish- 
ment of  the  Government.  To  guarantee  to  men  their  liberty  by 
an  instrument  that  defends  from  licentiousness,  and  to  give  men 
power  enough  to  do  good,  and  to  have  it  so  counterpoised  that 
they  cannot  abuse  it,  is  what  the  friends  of  men  have  been  labor- 
ing for  some  thousands  of  years ;  and,  likely,  the  consummation 
of  all  things  will  find  men  in  the  pursuit  of  it.  But  this  perfection 
is  not  an  attribute  of  men ;  yet  every  march  towards  it  is  praise- 
worthy. John  Leland. 

Hon.  George  N.  Briggs. 

Social  misunderstandings  were  always  painful  to  Mr. 
Briggs,  and  his  gentle,  placable  temper  disposed  him  to 
"  seek  peace  and  pursue  it,"  and  to  make  sacrifices  to  main- 
tain it  in  all  relations  of  life.  The  healing  of  a  social 
breach  was  thus  to  him  a  matter  of  earnest  congratula- 
tion :  — 

Washington,  Jan.  24,  1836. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

•  •••••  •• 

It  gave  me  great  pleasure  to  hear  of  the  visit  of and . 

I  cannot  bear  the  idea  of  living  on  any  other  than  terms  of  amity 
and  kindness  with  any  human  being.  There  are  ills  enough  in  life 
without  having  it  imbittered  by  feuds  and  misunderstandings,  that 
often  arise  out  of  occurrences  of  no  moment  in  themselves,  but 
which  are  permitted  to  grow  into  magnitude,  by  the  omission  to 
have  proper  explanations  at  a  proper  time.  It  ever  has  been,  and 
hereafter  shall  be,  my  effort  to  be  at  peace  with  all  my  fellow- 


144  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

beings.  If  there  is  one  human  being  with  whom  I  have  other  than 
friendly  personal  feelings  and  relations,  I  knoAV  it  not.  I  harbor 
no  hostility  against  any,  and  I  know  of  no  one  to  whom  and  for 
whom  it  would  not  give  me  pleasure  to  perform  an  act  of  kind- 
ness  I  have  been  so  fortunate  thus  far  in  life,  rarely, 

if  ever,  to  have  met  with  insults  from  those  with  whom  I  have 
mingled.  Perhaps  those  of  more  nice  and  sensitive  feelings  may 
think  it  is  because  I  have  not  been  sufficiently  tenacious  of  my 
rights  and  watchful  of  my  dignity.  It  may  be  so,  but  sure  I  am 
that  I  have  avoided  many  unpleasant  predicaments,  into  which 
those  of  a  different  view  have  often  fallen.  I  am  content  to  be 
considered  rather  too  obtuse  when  my  dignity  is  concerned,  than 
to  be  too  sensitive  and  high-toned.  Do  right  and  fear  not,  is  a 
maxim  that  will  carry  us  safely  and  pleasantly  through  life. 

The  "dear  domestic  love "  .breathes  out  again  in  the 
next  letter  to  his  wife,  and  ripples  into  a  charming  playful- 
ness of  tone :  — 

Washington,  Feb.  10,  1836. 

"Well,  my  dear,  the  bustle  of  the  day  is  again  over,  and  I  sit 
down  again  to  the  pleasant  duty  of  informing  you  of  my  welfare. 
To  be  sure,  twentj*-  years  ago,  when  I  was  teaching  school  in  the 
old  town-house,  and  occasionally  dropping  in  at  the  old  castle  over 
the  hill,  neither  of  us  exactly  foresaw,  that  at  this  time  I  should 
be  here  and  you  at  the  Boro',  in  charge  of  the  little  family  we 
should  rear.  But  so  it  is ;  and  although  we  began  poor,  and  in 
that  respect  hold  our  own  as  well  as  any  couple  I  ever  knew,  yet 
we  have  no  reason  to  complain.  We  have  never  scratched,  or  pat 
out  one  another's  eyes ;  and  though  I  have  had  to  scold  you  some- 
times, yet  I  don't  believe,  after  all,  but  that  there  are  worse  women 
in  the  world  than  you  are.  You  know  I  have  always  been  a  beau 
ideal  of  a  husband,  and  of  course  you  have  never  had  occasion  to 

find  fault  with 

Your  Own. 

The  manners  of  Washington  society  at  "feeding  time" 


WASHINGTON  MANNERS.  145 

do  not  seem  to  improve  in  the  observation  and  experience 
of  Mr.  Briggs,  if  we  may  judge  from  what  he  writes  :  — 

Washington,  Feb.  12,  1836. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

Last  night  the  President  had  another  levee,  and  I  was  fool 
enough  to  go  with  the  multitude,  no  wiser  than  myself  in  this 
respect.  I  presume  there  were  two  thousand  persons  there. 
Think  how  much  comfort  there  must  be  where  two  thousand  men 
and  women  are  huddled  together,  much  of  the  time  the  press  so 
great,  that  it  was  impossible  for  any  one  person  to  move  in  any 
direction,  till  the  mass,  of  which  he  formed  a  part,  began  to  stir, 
then,  as  it  went,  so  he  would  go.  When  supper  was  announced, 
the  rush  for  the  table  was  terrible.  I  made  three  vigorous  attempts 
to  reach  the  table,  but,  instead  of  reaching  it,  I  could  not  get  a 
sight  of  it,  and  gave  up  the  attempt,  content  to  starve  rather 
than  squeeze  to  death.  Suppw  was  announced  at  ten-and-a-half. 
Some  of  the  guests  reached  the  tables  at  about  two  o'clock.  This 
is  a  sensible  proceeding  in  high  life,  truly ! 

Always  thine, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  incident  of  a  session  of  Congress  protracted  into  the 
early  hours  of  the  Sabbath,  is  not  quite  so  exceptional 
now  as  it  was  thirty  years  ago.  It  is  not  at  all  to  the 
honor  of  the  National  Legislature  that  it  should  have  grown 
familiar  by  frequent  recurrence  :  — 

Washington,  March  27,  1836. 
My  dear  Wipe  : 

You  must  not  look  for  a  very  spirited  letter  this  evening.  Our 
yesterday's  session  lasted  till  light  this  morning.  We  were  to- 
gether eighteen  hours,  during  which  time  I  did  not  sleep,  or  eat 
anything  but  a  cracker  and  a  small  bit  of  cake ;  but  to  my  fasting 
I  ascribe  my  exemption  from  any  other  inconvenience  save  a  little 
drowsiness.  The  subject  before  the  House  was  a  contested  elec- 
tion from  the  State  of  North  Carolina.  It  excited  a  great  deal  of 
13 


146  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BR1GGS. 

interest,  and  was  made  by  the  majority  a  strong  party  question, 
and  they  resolved  to  put  an  end  to  it  by  the  application  of  the 
previous  question,  on  Saturday  night.  The  minority  thought  the 
course  unjust  aud  oppressive,  and  determined  to  make  all  the  re- 
sistance in  their  power.  When  the  previous  question  is  put  and 
carried,  it  closes  the  debate,  and  cuts  off  all  amendments  to  the 
proposition  pending  at  the  time.  Both  of  these  results  the  minor- 
ity thought  would  be  wrong  in  this  case.  The  night,  until  twelve 
o'clock,  was  taken  up  by  a  gentleman  from  Kentucky,  and  by  inef- 
fectual motions  and  votes  to  adjourn.  I  suppose  the  yeas  and 
nays  were  taken  ten  times.  At  twelve  o'clock,  it  was  objected 
that  it  was  the  Sabbath,  and  there  was  no  public  necessity  for  the 
House  to  sit,  and  they  ought  not  to  proceed  with  business.  But 
party  is  deaf  alike  to  the  voice  of  justice  and  the  commands  of 
religion,  and  a  dead  majority  voted  against  adjournment.  Clergy- 
men, deacons,  and  professed  Christians  determined,  in  obedience 
to  the  behests  of  party,  to  devote  the  Sabbath  day  to  legislation 
of  no  particular  urgency  more  than  the  ordinary  acts  of  legisla- 
tion. A  Baptist  clergyman,  a  Jackson  man  too,  from  Alabama, 
had  the  courage  to  make  a  motion  declaring  it  out  of  order  to  pro- 
ceed with  business  in  the  circumstances.  A  warm  debate  arose 
under  this  new  question.  Another  motion  was  made  to  adjourn; 
and,  on  the  yeas  and  nays  being  ordered,  when  Mr.  Adams's  name 
was  called,  he  being  first  on  the  list,  he  refused  to  vote,  on  the 
ground  that  the  House  had  no  right  to  compel  him  to  vote  on  the 
Sabbath,  unless  there  was  some  public  necessity  that  required  it. 
After  some  delay,  the  call  was  proceeded  with,  and,  when  my 
name  was  reached,  I  resolved  to  stand  by  Mr.  Adams,  believing 
him  to  be  right.  I  declined  answering.  When  the  last  name  was 
called,  which  was  that, of  Mr.  Wise,  of  Virginia,  he  refused  to 
answer,  because  two  gentlemen  from  Massachusetts  had  failed  to 
answer,  to  their  names,  and  he  was  not  bound  to  answer  till  they 
had.  That  carried  the  House  back  to  Mr.  Adams ;  and  a  motion 
was  made  to  excuse  him.  He  said  he  did  not  ask  to  be  excused, 
and  would  not  be  excused.  A  debate  now  arose,  of  an  exciting 
and  party  nature,  until  Mr.  Wise  and  Mr.  Bynum,  of  North  Caro- 
lina, got  into  a  furious  quarrel,  called  each  other  all  the  hard 


LETTER   TO   BIS   DAUGHTER.  147 

names  and  vile  epithets  they  could  lay  hold  of.  and  made  a  strug- 
gle to  get  at  each  other  for  violence.  A  scene  of  great  disorder 
ensued,  which  finally  ended  in  their  friends  calling  unon  them  to 
say  before  the  House,  that,  as  they  had  made  offensive  remarks, 
under  great  excitement,  they  would  agree  to  leave  the  matter 
where  it  was.  They  are  both  duellists,  and  it  was  thought  neces- 
sary to  interfere,  to  prevent  a  fight.  The  whole  scene  was  well 
calculated  to  show  how  supremely  ridiculous  is  that  miserable  sys- 
tem, falsely  called  -the  laws  of  honor." 

This  was  a  Sabbath-morning  scene,  in  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives of  the  United  States.  It  was  nothing  more  than  what  might 
have  been  looked  for,  as  the  probable  issue  of  blind  determination 
of  a  political  party  resolved  at  all  hazards  to  carry  their  point.  It 
would  not  be  just  to  cast  all  the  blame  for  this  shameful  excess, 
upon  the  majority.  Both  parties  were  excited,  and  both  acted 
unwisely,  but  the  majority  had  it  in  their  power  to  prevent  it,  by 
a  timely  adjournment,  which  they  refused.  With  the  exception 
of  the  scene  I  here  mentioned,  it  was  a  very  civil  night  session. 
We  adjourned  about  5  o'clock  a.  m.,  without  taking  any  question. 
When  we  came  into  the  street,  the  daylight  shone  in  the  east. 

Thine, 

G.  X.  Briggs. 

The  preceptive  benevolence  of  heart  and  beneficence  of 
hand,  which  he  enjoins  in  the  following  letter  to  his  daugh- 
ter, shine  all  the  more  effectively  for  the  light  reflected 
upon  them  from  his  daily  life,  crowded  as  it  was  with  prac- 
tical illustrations  of  the  lessons  he  taught  :  — 

Washington,  3d  April,  183G. 
My  Daughter  : 

You  can  make  yourself  useful  by  a  faithful  performance  of  these 
duties  of  humanity.  Be  always  willing  to  visit  the  sick  and  con- 
sole the  sorrowful.  Particularly,  make  it  your  object  to  search 
out  the  suffering  poor.     There  is  not  much  danger  that  the  rich 

and  prosperous  will  be  neglected True  benevolence 

makes  sure  that  these  objects  shall  be  sought  for  and  comforted. 


148  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  2f.  BRIGGS. 

The  Saviour,  who  exemplified  the  benevolence  of  his  mission  on 
earth  by  preaching  the  gospel  to  the  poor,  and  curing  them  of  all 
manner  of  diseases,  was  not  content  to  stay  at  home  and  relieve 
such  objects  of  distress  as  came  to  his  notice,  but  he  "  weut  about 

doing  good." I  know  a  lady  in  this  city,  who  is  the 

pride  and  ornament  of  the  highest  circles  of  society,  and  who  is 
second  to  no  one  in  the  Capital  for  the  attention  and  respect  which 
she  receives  from  a  host  of  admirers,  who  finds  abundance  of  time 
to  visit  the  hovels  and  huts  of  poverty  and  distress.  She  is  an 
angel  of  mercy  to  the  poor  and  friendless.  In  my  estimation,  her 
rich  mind,  her  elegant  person,  and  unusual  accomplishments  are 
poor  things,  when  placed  in  comparison  with  the  benevolence  of 
her  heart,  exhibited  in  such  works  as  I  have  alluded  to.  Two  or 
three  years  since,  early  one  evening,  she  received  a  message  from 
a  poor  widow,  who  lived  alone,  in  a  mere  shanty  in  the  suburbs  of 
the  city,  informing  her  that  she  was  very  sick,  and  wished  to  see 
her.  She  left  her  family  under  pretence  of  going  to  pass  the  night 
with  her  sister  in  another  part  of  the  city ;  and  when  she  reached 
the  sick  woman,  she  found  her  dying,  desolate  and  alone,  save  for 
the  presence  of  another  stranger,  a  woman,  brought  there  prob- 
ably by  the  same  motives  as  herself.  She  watched  over  the 
dying,  friendless  widow,  mitigating,  as  far  as  it  was  in  her  power, 
the  last  agony,  and  giving  religious  consolation  in  the  trying  hour. 
About  daylight  she  closed  the  poor  sufferer's  eyes,  and  returned  to 

her  family Instead  of  charities  like  these  interfering  with 

any  of  the  useful  or  necessary  pursuits  of  life,  they  will  become 
real  auxiliaries,  by  regulating  the  mind  and  chastening  the  affec- 
tions. One  performance  of  our  duty  always  prepares  us  for  another. 
Duty  and  happiness  go  hand  in  hand.  The  reward  of  virtuous 
conduct,  with  Him  who  reads  the  heart,  depends,  not  so  much  on 
the  amount  done,  as  upon  the  motive  that  prompts  to  the  doing  of  it. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

"Father  Taylor"  is  so  well  known,  and  so  kindly  remem- 
bered by  multitudes,  for  his  zeal  in  his  special  work,  that 
the  following  letter  will  find  many  interested  readers  :  — 


My  dear  Wife 


FATHER    TAYLOR.  140 

Washington,  16  May,  1836. 


Yesterday,  Father  Taylor,  of  Boston,  who  has  been 

several  years  very  noted  in  his  exertions  for  the  sailors,  preached 
in  the  Capitol.  There  was  an  immense  audience.  He  spoke  an 
hour  and  a  half,  with  great  fervor  and  power.  He  seems  to  be  a 
man  of  deep  piety,  and  is  at  times  very  eloquent 

Ten  or  a  dozen  sailors  came  up  from  the  navy  yard,  and  sat 
around  the  Clerk's  desk,  in  front  of  the  Speaker's  chair.  When 
nearly  through,  he  paused  and  said,  "  I  was  thinking  of  the  sea- 
men ;  "  and,  looking  over  upon  the  little  cluster  of  sailors,  with  a 
countenance  full  of  animation  and  benignity,  he  added,  "Here 
they  are,  —  I  am  now  at  home."  For  a  few  moments  he  spoke  of 
the  success  in  reclaiming  the  generous  but  dissipated  sailor,  and 
making  him  the  humble  and  confiding  Christian,  in  a  manner  that 
moved  all  hearts  and  filled  many  eyes  with  tears.  He  said  the 
poor  sailor,  in  the  midst  of  the  gloomy  tempest,  when  the  heavy 
thunder  broke  over  his  head  and  the  sharp  lightning  disclosed  the 
yawning  gulf  beneath,  and  the  tasselled  tops  of  the  deep  rising 
above  him,  had  no  quiet  and  secure  retreat  to  retire  to.  He  had 
to  look  the  danger  in  the  face,  and  could  only  find  -calmness  and 
peace  in  a  holy  confidence  in  Him,  who  rides  upon  the  storm  and 
controls  the  sea. 

In  the  evening  he  preached  a  very  good  sermon  to  a  very 
crowded  house,  at  the  Methodist  church.  After  his  sermon,  four 
or  five  delegates  from  the  Cherokees  took  their  places  in  the  pulpit, 
and  sung  a  hymn  in  the  Cherokee  language.  It  was  full  of  music 
and  devotion.  Their  voices  were  full,  sweet,  and  harmonious. 
One  of  them  spoke  of  the  influence  of  the  gospel  among  them. 
He  said,  through  an  interpreter,  that  one  effect  was  to  make  the 
women  stay  at  home,  and  cook  their  food.  When  the  gospel  pre- 
vails among  the  degraded  and  wretched,  it  improves  their  social 
condition.  Instead  of  roving  through  the  forest,  with  her  Httle 
pappoose  at  her  back,  and  carrying  the  implements  of  her  lazy 
and  cruel  lord,  the  Christian  squaw  remains  in  her  peaceful  domes- 
tic abode,  administering  to  the  comforts  of  her  family,  cheered 
with  the  prospect  of  future  happiness.  By  the  influence  of  the 
13* 


I.jO  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.   RRIGGS. 

gospel,  lie  said,  his  people  bore  patiently  the  injuries  which  were 

heaped  upon  them,  and,  instead  of  seeking  for  vengeance  upon 

those  who  brought  difficulties  upon  them,  they  prayed  for  them. 

What  a  change  this,  in  the  breast  of  the  savage !    He  closed  by 

saying,  "Brethren,  I  hope  we  shall  soon  meet  where  we  can  speak 

to  one  another,  and  praise  God  together,  without  an  interpreter." 

One  of  the  Indians  prayed  in  Cherokee.     The  language  is  soft, 

smooth,  and  rich  in  tone.     Interesting  race !     I  was  happy  to  see 

this  relic  of  them,  and  hear  them  sing  the  praises  of  Immanuel, 

and  pray  to  the  Father  of  Mercies  in  their  own  beautiful  language. 

Love  to  all.    God  bless  you. 

G.  N.  Bkiggs. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

THE  ARKANSAS  QUESTION  IN  CONGRESS  — MR.  BOULDIN'S  CHALLENGE  — 
JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS'S  AMENDMENT  TO  THE  BILL  —  MR.  BRIGGS'S 
SPEECH  — HIS  RETICENCE  CONCERNING  HIMSELF  — A  LONG  DAY'S  SES- 
SION  —  INDECOROUS  LEGISLATION  — LETTER  TO  HIS  NEPHEW  —  HIS  DILI- 
GENCE IN  THE  HOUSE  — AN  AMUSING  EXCERPT— THE  DUEL  OF  CILLEY 
AND  GRAVES  —  A  LETTER  CONCERNING  IT  —  HOME-LONGINGS  —  A  TRIB- 
UTE —  EXCURSION  TO  MOUNT  VERNON  —  A  PREACHER'S  THEOLOGY 
QUESTIONED. 

T  was  towards  the  close  of  the  long  session  of  the 
Twenty-fourth  Congress,  that  one  of  the  most  excit- 
ing topics  of  that  period  came  up  for  discussion.  It 
was  the  application  of  Arkansas  for  admission  into 
the  Union.  Arkansas,  originally  a  part  of  Louisiana 
Territory,  was  isolated  by  the  admission  of  Louisiana  as  a 
State,  in  1812.  For  the  next  seven  years  Arkansas  was  a 
part  of  Missouri  Territory,  and  in  1819  wras  again  isolated 
by  the  admission  of  Missouri  as  a  State  ;  and  now  it  be- 
came a  Territor}'  in  its  own  right,  which  it  continued  to  be 
until  June,  1836,  when,  at  a  convention  held  at  Little  Rock, 
a  State  constitution  was  adopted,  wThich  was  sent  np  to 
Washington,  with  application  for  the  admission  of  the  ^tate 
into  the  Union.  This  constitution  contained  this  memo- 
rable clause  :  "  The  General  Assembly  shall  have  no  powTer 
to  pass  laws  for  the  emancipation  of  slaves  without  the 
consent  of  their  owners.  They  shall  have  no  power  to  pre- 
vent emigrants  to  this  State  from  bringing  with  them  such 
persons  as  are  deemed  slaves  by  the  laws  of  any  one  of  the 
United  States." 

151 


152  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

On  the  8th  of  June,  the  bill  for  the  admission  of  Arkansas 
came  up  for  consideration.  In  the  early  stage  of  the  de- 
bate, Mr.  Bouldin,  a  member  from  Virginia,  threw  down 
the  glove  in  these  words  :  — 

"If  there  are  any  serious  difficulties  to  be  raised  in  the  House 
to  the  admission  of  Arkansas,  upon  the  ground  of  negro  slavery,  I 
wish  immediate  notice  of  it.  If  my  confidence  is  misplaced,  I  wish 
to  be  corrected  as  soon  as  possible,  and  as  certainly  as  possible. 
If  there  really  is  any  intention  of  putting  any  difficulty,  restraint, 
limit  —  any  shackle  or  embarrassment  on  the  South  on  account  of 
negro  slavery,  I  wish  to  know  it.  If  there  are  any  individuals 
having  such  feelings,  I  wish  to  know  them  ;  I  wish  to  have  their 
names  upon  j*eas  and  nays.  If  they  are  a  majority,  I  shall  act 
promptly,  decisively,  and  immediately  upon  it,  and  have  no  doubt 
all  the  South  will  do  the  same." 

What  was  the.i  vaunting  and  boasting  and  menace,  sub- 
sequently ripened,  as  all  the  world  knows,  into  the  most 
gigantic  and  unhappy  rebellion  the  wTorld  ever  saw. 

The  next  day,  when  the  consideration  of  the  bill  was 
resumed,  the  venerable  John  Quincy  Adams  rose  and 
offered  an  amendment,  excluding  any  construction  upon 
which  assent  of  Congress  to  the  clause  above  referred  to 
could  be  predicated. 

Following  Messrs.  Adams  and  Cushing,  of  Massachu- 
setts, and  Mr.  Hand,  of  New  York,  who  all  advocated  the 
amendment,  Mr.  Briggs  made  a  speech,  also  in  favor  of  it, 
which  is,  perhaps,  the  best  example  among  his  Congres- 
sional efforts,  of  his  intellectual  strength,  and,  no  less,  of 
his  forbearing  spirit.  For  this  reason  it  is  here  quoted  in 
full :  — 

"  My  colleague  (Mr.  Adams)  proposes  to  amend  the  eighth  sec- 
tion of  the  '  Bill  for  the  Admission  of  Arkansas  into  the  Union,'  by 


THE  ARKANSAS   QUESTION:  153 

inserting  the  following  declaration  :  '  And  nothing  in  this  act  shall 
be  construed  as  an  assent  by  Congress  to  the  article  in  the  consti- 
tution of  said  State  in  relation  to  slavery  and  the  emancipation  of 
slaves.'    It  must  be  seen,  at  a  glance,  that  this  simple,  plain  decla- 
ration contains  nothing  of  the  principle  which  gave  rise  to  the  Mis- 
souri controversy.     In  that  case,  a  restriction  was  imposed  on 
Missouri  which  denied  to  that  State  certain  rights  and  powers, 
which  under  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  were  possessed 
by  other  States.     The  advocates  of  the  State  contended  that  Con- 
gress had  no  authority  to  enforce  that  restriction  or  limitation 
upon  her  sovereignty.     This  amendment  does  not  in  the  slightest 
degree  abridge,  restrain,  or  in  any  manner  interfere  with  the  pre- 
rogative of  Arkansas  as  an  independent  State.     If  adopted,  it  will 
not  postpone  her  admission  into  the  Union  a  single  day.     It  does 
not  question  the  right  of  her  citizens  to  any  species  of  property 
recognized  by  the  constitution  or  laws  of  the  State.     It  imposes 
no  restraint  upon  her  political  powers  and  sovereignty.     It  simply 
denies  that  by  the  act  of  admitting  her  into  the  Union,  with  this 
article   incorporated  into   her   constitution,    Congress    gives  its 
assent  to  the  principle  of  that  article.     Without  this  protestation, 
the  act  of  admission  would  be  at  least  an  implied  assent  to  this 
extraordinary    constitutional  provision.     Whilst   such  an   appro- 
bation would  be  of  no  use  or  benefit  to  that  State,  it  would  be  in 
direct  violation  of  the  opinion  of  a  large  majority  of  the  members 
of  this  House,  and  of  the  known  sentiments  of  the  people  they 
represent.     What  good  reason,  then,  can  be  urged  why  this  amend- 
ment should  not  be  adopted  ?    Are  gentlemen  prepared  to  say,  by 
their  votes  to  reject  this  most  reasonable  proposition,  that  this  act 
shall  be  construed  as  an  assent  by  Congress  to  the  article  in  the 
constitution  of  the  State  in  relation  to  slavery  and  the  emancipa- 
tion of  slaves?    Will  not  such  an  inference  be  the  natural  and 
necessary  result  of  such  a  vote  ?    I  ask  gentlemen,  whose  opinions 
I  know  coincide  with  my  own  upon  this  subject,  to  consider  well 
before  they  take  the  step  which  cannot  be  retraced. 

"  Mr.  Chairman,  the  word  '  slave,'  or  '  slavery,'  is  nowhere  to  be 
found  in  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  Whilst  that  instru- 
ment, by  its  various  provisions,  guarantees  to  the  people  of  the 


154  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  B BIGGS. 

States  their  rights  to  property  acknowledged  by  the  laws  of  the 
several  States,  its  patriotic  framers  most  cautiously  avoided  the 
use  of  terms  which  would  admit  that  man  could  be  made  the  prop- 
erty of  his  fellow-man.  If,  in  the  course  of  events,  the  people  of 
every  State  in  this  Union  shall  abolish  slavery  within  their  own 
limits,  and  the  time  shall  come  when  there  shall  not  be  a  bondman 
in  all  this  great  and  free  republic,  generations  who  succeed  us 
will  Cud  no  evidence  in  this  Constitution  that  such  an  institution 
as  slavery  ever  existed.  The  people  of  Arkansas  have  used  less 
caution  than  did  the  framers  of  the  federal  Constitution.  Though 
their  constitution  was  to  be  presented  to  a  Congress,  for  its 
approval,  composed  of  members,  a  majority  of  whom,  in  both 
branches,  represent  constituents  opposed  to  slavery  in  every  form, 
it  contains  an  article,  the  design  and  effect  of  which  is  to  make 
involuntary  servitude  perpetual  within  her  limits.  This  is  much 
to  be  regretted.  If  she  had  pursued  a  different  course,  the  difficul- 
ties which  now  present  themselves  would  have  been  avoided, 
without  any  prejudice  to  her  rights  and  wishes. 

"  Can  it  be  expected  that  the  representatives  from  the  free  States 
of  this  Union  will  give  their  assent  to  this  exceptionable  article  ? 
In  justice  to  those  whom  they  represent,  can  they  do  less  than 
express  their  dissent  from  it  ?  It  has  been  shown  that  this  amend- 
ment can  have  no  injurious  effect  upon  the  rights  of  the  people  of 
Arkansas.  "Will  members  on  this  floor,  coming  from  States  whose 
people  are  known  to  be  hostile  to  the  principle  of  this  article  in 
the  Constitution  presented  for  their  approval,  be  faithful  to  the 
trust  reposed  in  them,  if  they  fail  to  declare  their  disapprobation 
of  it?  I  call  upon  gentlemen  from  the  non-slaveholding  States 
truly  to  reflect  the  sentiments  of  their  constituents,  and  to  support 
their  well-known  opinions  on  this  subject,  by  voting  for  the 
amendment  now  before  us.  Can  they  with  propriety  or  consist- 
ency approve  of  a  principle  universally  condemned  by  their  con- 
stituents ?  I  appeal  to  the  candor  of  gentlemen  from  the  slave- 
holding  States,  and  ask  them  if,  in  their  opinion,  it  would  be  just 
or  reasonable  to  desire  us  to  do  this  ?  Whilst  they  stand  by  their 
constituents,  and  manfully  maintain  their  rights  and  defend  their 
interests,  shall  we  be  recreant  to  our  duty,  and  fail  to  avow  and 


MR.  BBIGGS'S  SPEECH.  155 

defend  the  doctrine  of  those  who  honor  us  "with  their  confidence  ? 
Sir,  I  hope  not. 

"  Mr.  Chairman,  to  the  utmost  of  my  powers  I  will  here  and  else- 
where support  all  the  rights  of  all  the  States  of  this  Union  defined 
and  secured  by  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  I  regard 
them  all  as  equally  sacred  and  inviolable.  That  instrument  was 
the  result  of  a  compromise  of  conflicting  opinions  and  conflicting 
interests,  of  mutual  concessions  and  mutual  pledges.  It  is  my 
duty  to  stand  by  it,  and  maintain  it  in  all  its  parts.  It  is  the 
supreme  law  of  the  land,  and  its  provisions  are  alike  binding  upon 
all  the  citizens  of  all  the  States  of  this  confederacy.  With  those 
rights  secured  by  that  binding  charter  I  will  never  interfere.  But, 
sir,  upon  this  subject  of  slavery  I  cannot  go  the  breadth  of  a  hair 
beyond  the  obligations  imposed  upon  me  by  that  instrument.  I 
never  can  consent,  with  the  views  which  I  now  entertain,  to  give 
a  vote,  or  do  any  other  act,  which  shall  sanction  the  principle  or 
extend  the  existence  of  human  slavery.  In  the  deep  conviction 
of  my  own  mind  and  heart,  I  believe  it  to  be  politically  and  morally 
wrong.  With  all  my  soul  I  approve  of  and  believe  in  the  truth  of 
that  great  principle,  avowed  and  proclaimed  to  the  world  in  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  '  that  all  men  are  created  equal,  that 
they  are  endowed  by  their  Creator  with  certain  inalienable  rights, 
that  among  these  are  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness.'  I 
do  not  look  upon  that  declaration  as  the  mere  publication  of  a 
truth  beautiful  in  theory  only,  and  not  capable  of  a  practical  appli- 
cation ;  on  the  contrary,  I  believe  it  may  be,  and  in  all  free  govern- 
ments should  be,  carried  out  in  practice.  It  is  based  upon  the 
principles  of  eternal  justice  and  truth,  which  will  abide  when  all 
existing  governments  and  human  institutions  shall  decay  and  pass 
away  forever. 

"  Holding  these  opinions,  sir,  how  can  I  give  my  sanction  to 
that  highly  exceptionable  article  in  the  constitution  of  Arkansas 
presented  for  our  approval,  and  which  by  the  bill  before  us  we  do 
approve  and  assent  to,  unless  we  negative  that  assent  by  some 
such  amendment  as  the  one  under  consideration?  In  doing  so,  I 
should  violate  my  own  sense  of  propriety  and  right,  and  be  treach- 
erous to  the  freemen  who  sent  me  here.     In  voting  for  the  amend- 


156  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

merit  of  my  colleague,  I  shall  vindicate  my  own,  and  equally  the 
undivided  sentiments  of  my  constituents,  without  impairing  any 
of  the  guarantees  of  the  Constitution,  or  infringing  upon  the  rights 
of  any  State  in  this  Union." 

It  may  be  mentioned  here,  as  an  illustration  of  the 
remarkable  and  habitual  reticence  which  Mr.  Briggs  ob- 
served concerning  his  own  part  in  public  affairs,  even  when 
at  home,  or  in  his  communications  to  his  family,  that  in  his 
letter  to  his  wife,  written  the  day  after  that  upon  which  he 
delivered  the  foregoing  speech,  and  describing  some  of  the 
general  aspects  of  the  House  during  the  pendenc}T  of  the 
question  involved  in  it,  he  makes  not  even  the  slightest 
allusion  to  his  own  share  in  the  debate.  The  omission  to 
do  this  misht  have  been  accidental,  but  it  cannot  be  so 
regarded,  in  view  of  the  constant  recurrence  of  such  omis- 
sions. It  was,  rather,  a  trait  of  character  —  a  sign  of  the 
inherent  modesty  which  always  led  him  to  leave  himself  in 
the  background,  even  when  among  those  who  would  not 
have  construed  his  words  into  egotism.  Here  is  an  extract 
from  the  letter  to  which  reference  is  made  :  — 

"  Our  session  yesterday  was  of  twenty-five  hours,  which  was  the 
longest  legislative  day  on  record!  It  was  like  the  Irishman's 
month  of  August,  which  was  six  weeks  long.  The  House  sat 
from  ten  o'clock  yesterday  morning  until  eleven  this  morning, 
without  one  moment's  recess.  At  ten  o'clock  last  night,  I  left  in 
disgust.  At  daylight  our  mess,  who  were  all  at  home,  were  sum- 
moned, by  one  of  the  officers  of  the  House,  to  go  to  the  Capitol. 
We  went  up,  and  found  a  sorry-looking  set.  As  "Wise  said,  some 
were  tired,  some  sleepy,  and  some  drunk.  It  was  a  scene  of  dis- 
order and  confusion,  disgraceful  to  the  legislature  of  a  civilized 
people.  This  outrage  upon  decorum  and  propriety  was  necessary, 
or  deemed  so,  to  effect  purposes  of  party.  We  were  a  committee 
of  the  whole  upon  the  bills  for  the  admission  of  the  States  of  Mich- 


LETTER   TO  HIS  XEPEEW.  157 

igan  and  of  Arkansas  into  the  Union;  bills  of  the  utmost  impor- 
tance. Yet  they  were  conducted  amidst  confusion  and  tumult  and 
disorder.     I  hope  our  session  is  approaching  its  termination." 

From  his  quiet  Lanesboro'  home  the  enfranchised  mem- 
ber thus  writes  to  one  of  his  nephews.  His  determination 
to  decline  a  re-election,  hinted  at  in  this  letter,  was  not 
carried  out  until  two  years  later  :  — 

Laxesboko',  October,  1836. 

Well,  my  good  fellow,  I  suppose  by  this  time  you  have  lost  all  your 
patience  in  waiting  for  a  line  from  your  uncle.  But  so  the  world 
goes.  With  those  nominal  friends,  who  hang  loosely  about  us  at 
best,  we  have  to  be  very  punctilious ;  while  with  our  real  friends, 
who  would  cluster  about  us  in  the  deep  shades  of  adversity,  we 
take  the  the  greatest  liberties.  It  is  said  that  husbands  and  wives 
are  more  sharp  with  each  other,  and  indulge  in  occasional  bicker- 
ings, because  they  are  so  conscious  of  the  firm  hold  of  each  other's 
affections,  they  do  not  fear  a  breach;  whilst  timid  lovers  are  so  full 
of  fears,  that  they  do  not  offend  in  the  slightest  matters.  Now,  to 
apply  the  doctrine,  I  suppose  if  I  did  not  know  that  you  loved 
your  Uncle  George,  I  should  be  more  careful  to  answer  your  letters 
which  you  are  so  kind  as  to  write  me  and  mine.  It  had  been  my 
fixed  purpose  to  visit  Cleveland  during  the  past  summer,  but  Con- 
gress was  so  long  in  session,  and  I  have  been  so  occupied  since, 
that  I  had  to  forego  the  pleasure.  All  who  visit  the  West,  come 
home  full  of  the  praises  of  Cleveland.  My  own  interest,  and  that 
of  my  family,  is  that  I  should  be  in  some  business  place,  but  here 
I  am  tied  down  by  a  multitude  of  Lilliputian  thongs,  wanting  reso- 
lution to  snap  them  and  be  off.  I  have  no  reason  to  complain  of 
Providence  in  regard  to  my  situation  in  life,  and  I  have  great 
occasion  to  be  grateful  to  the  citizens  of  Old  Berkshire  for  their 
kindness  to  me.  Two  years  ago  I  had  not  the  most  distant  idea 
of  ever  being  a  candidate  for  Congress  again  in  this  district.  In- 
deed, it  was  my  fixed  purpose  not  to  be.  Since  I  came  home  in 
July,  the  strong  feeling  of  my  personal  and  political  friends  in 
the  district,  so  far  as  I  have  known  them,  has  been  against  my 
14 


158  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  X.   BRIG  OS. 

retiring.  My  own  inclination  and  judgment  were  against  being 
a  candidate  for  re-election ;  but  under  the  circumstances  of  the 
district,  and  with  the  certainty  of  much  difficulty  in  fixing  upon 
any  other  person  for  a  candidate,  and  the  repeated  solicitations 
that  I  would  not  decline,  I  remained  silent  upon  the  subject.  The 
Democrats  have  nominated  Theodore  Sedgwick.  Whether  they 
will  elect  him  or  not,  will  be  seen  after  election.  If  he  is  chosen, 
it  will  only  prove  that  the  people  of  the  district  prefer  him  to  their 
old  member,  and  their  old  member  will  not  quarrel  with  them 
about  it. 

Mr.  Webster  visited  our  Cattle  Show  and  Fair  last  week.  He 
was  received  with  great  respect  by  all  parties,  and  made  a  good 
impression  upon  our  farmers. 

Berkshire  was  never  more  prosperous  than  at  this  moment,  save 
and  excepting  its  lawyers,  whose  condition  is  as  cold  and  cheer- 
less as  a  Siberian  winter. 

Keep  writing  on,  my  boy,  whether  I  write  or  not. 

Your  friend  and  uncle, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

To  James  A.  Briggs. 

There  are  fewer  traces  of  Mr.  Briggs  during  the  second 
session  of  the  Twenty-fourth  Congress  than  usual.  He  was 
however  in  his  place,  and  diligently  at  work  ;  much  of  the 
time  maturing,  in  committees,  measures  for  the  considera- 
tion and  decision  of  the  House.  He  had  now  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Committee  on  Post  Offices  and  Post  Roads 
through  three  sessions,  and  his  indefatigable  labors  in  this 
department  of  public  business,  his  minute  acquaintance 
with  all  its  details,  and  the  deference  paid  to  his  judgment 
by  his  colleagues,  conspired  to  entitle  him  fairly  to  the 
chairmanship  of  this  important  committee.  His  connection, 
however,  with  the  minority  party  in  the  House,  hindered 
this  odcial  recognition  of  his  deserts,  and  it  came  tardily 
enough  six  years  later. 


THE  DUEL   OF  CILLEY  AND   GRAVES.  159 

From  the  scanty  memorials  in  letters  of  this  period  at 
command,  the  following  amusing  excerpt  is  made,  curiously 
sandwiched  in  the  original  manuscript,  between  grave  re- 
ligious reflections.  It  is  not  the  less  entertaining  to  those 
who  knew  him  well,  that  they  remember  how  emphatically 
he  was  his  own  physician,  —  and  without  any  distrust  of  his 
faithful  friend  and  family  medical  adviser,  Dr.  Tyler,  in- 
dulged his  propensity  for  recipes  and  specifics.  The  letter 
quoted  from  bears  date  of  December  11,  1836  :  — 

"  I  have  learned  a  new  remedy  for  crazy  and  billious  stomachs, 
and  from  the  success  of  those  who  have  used  it,  and  from  its  sim- 
plicity, I  have  a  mind  that  mother  should  try  it,  and  you  too,  if 
your  stomach  should  ever  get  out  of  sorts !  To  a  quart  of  clear  hard- 
wood ashes  and  a  gill  of  soot,  add  a  gallon  of  boiling  water.  Let 
it  stand  a  day  or  two.  Then  turn  it  off  carefully  and  strain  it. 
Take  half  a  wineglass  or  more  before  eating.  It  is  said  to  be  very 
good  also,  to  take  it  just  after  eating,  when  one's  food  occasions 
distress.  I  know  several  persons  who  have  been  essentially  bene- 
fited by  this  simple  alkali.    It  is  cheap,  and  easy  to  try." 

The  first  session  of  the  Twenty-fifth  Congress  was  made 
at  once  memorable  and  melancholy  by  the  duel  between  Mr. 
Cilley,  of  Maine,  and  Mr.  Graves,  of  Kentucky,  in  which  the 
former  was  killed.  Probably  no  duel  occurring  in  this 
country  since  that  between  Hamilton  and  Burr,  in  1804, 
excited  the  popular  feeling  to  such  an  extent  as  the  one 
here  referred  to.  It  very  naturally  produced  a  deep  impres- 
sion of  terror  and  pain  in  the  mind  of  Mr.  Briggs,  whose 
natural  disposition  recoiled,  with  hardly  less  decision  than 
his  spiritual  temper,  from  such  a  method  of  settling  differ- 
ences between  men  of  honor.  He  thus  alludes  to  this  sad 
affair  in  a  letter  to  his  sons,  George  and  Henry :  — 


160  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.    HR1GGS. 

Washington,  February  26,  1838. 
My  dear  Boys  : 

We  bad  a  most  tragical  affair  here  last  Saturday.  Mr.  Cilley 
from  Maine,  and  Mr.  Graves  from  Kentucky,  fought  a  duel  with 
rifles.  On  the  third  or  fourth  fire  —  for  their  seconds  differ  as  to  the 
number  of  times  they  fired  —  Mr.  Cilley  was  shot,  and  died  almost 
instantly.  They  fought  four  or  five  miles  out  of  the  city,  in  the 
state  of  Maryland.  The  distance  they  fired  at,  was  eighty  yards. 
Mr.  Graves  gave  the  challenge,  Mr.  Cilley  accepted  —  chose  the 
weapons,  distance,  and  mode  of  fighting.  The  difficulty  between 
them  was  of  the  most  trifling  nature.  This  mode  of  settling  diffi- 
culties is  said  to  be  according  to  the  law  of  honor,  but  the  whole 
thing  is  founded  on  false  notions.  A  thing  which  is  contrary  t-j 
the  laws  of  the  land  and  of  God  cannot  be  honorable 

If  the  wise  and  good  of  all  communities  would  set  their  faces 
against  the  cruel  practice  of  duelling,  it  soon  would  be  trampled 
down.  I  am  extremely  sorry  that  one  of  the  parties  of  this  fatal 
meeting  should  have  been  from  New  England.  His  engaging  in 
the  duel  was  a  violation  of  the  public  sentiment  of  the  country 
from  which  he  came.  A  New  England  man  yielding  to  the  code 
of  honor,  falsely  so  called,  gives  it  a  currency  and  a  sanction  to 
which  it  is  not  entitled.  Even  the  people  where  it  prevails  say  it 
is  wrong ;  but  public  opinion  makes  it  necessary  for  them  to  yield 
to  it.  The  short  and  conclusive  argument  against  it  is,  that  it  is 
contrary  to  the  law  of  God 

His  daughter's  affluent  memory  and  pen  supply  the  fol- 
lowing reminiscence,  in  harmony  wTith  the  foregoing  letter : 

<;  One  of  my  father's  friends,  who  had  killed  his  man  in  a  duel,  —  a 
Southern  gentleman  with  whom  he  was  on  most  agreeable  terms, 
—  said  to  him,  '  If  the  pillow  of  the  duellist  could  speak,  the  practice 
of  duelling  would  soon  cease.'  He  said  one  of  the  most  amiable 
and  genial  and  courteous  members  of  the  House  was  entirely 
changed  in  character  after  fighting  his  first  duel,  in  which,  by  his 
unpractised  hand,  his  opponent  was  killed.  Ever  after,  he  was 
irritable  and  silent  and  morose,  —  no  longer  a  social  being  in  his 


A  TRIBUTE.  161 

intercourse  with  men,  or  calm  and  good-tempered  in  his  discus- 
sions in  the  House." 

Here  are  more  of  his  home-sick  yearnings  —  thinly  veiled 
by  the  pleasantry  of  his  language  :  — 

Washington,  March  4,  1838. 
My  dear  "Wife  : 

How  I  should  delight  to  visit  you  at  the  old  Boro' 

this  evening,  but  as  one  brother  said  to  another  at  sea,  when  he 

asked  him  if  he  should  not  like  to  have  a  dish  of  mother's  pudding 

and  milk  for  supper,  "  Oh,  be  still,  Joe ;  that  is  too  good  to  think 

of."     Perhaps  it  is  because  I  am  growing  old  and  childish,  but  so 

it  is,  as  it  seems  to  me,  I  am  becoming  every  day  more  attached  to 

my  wife  and  children. 

Ever  thine, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

In  the  following  letter  he  pays  a  tribute  to  the  memory 
of  a  clerical  member  of  the  House.  Of  this  rare  class  of 
representatives,  the  South  generally  furnished  the  ma- 
jority :  — 

Washington,  May  9,  1838. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

We  have  just  performed  the  sad  duty  of  laying  in  the  tomb 
another  of  our  number — Mr.  Lawler,  of  Alabama.  He  died  after  an 
illness  of  six  days.  He  was  a  Baptist  preacher,  and  a  most  exem- 
plary and  excellent  man.  I  have  never  known  a  clergyman  in 
political  life  who,  at  all  times,  maintained  the  propriety  of  his 
character  as  he  did.  He  died,  as  he  lived,  a  Christian.  A  short 
time  before  he  died,  in  an  earnest  prayer,  he  said  his  hopes  had 
long  been  fixed  on  his  Saviour,  and  his  faith  in  His  mercies  was 
unshaken.  In  a  clear  and  distinct  voice  he  declared  of  that  Sav- 
iour in  whom  his  hopes  were  thus  centred,  that  in  all  the  trials 
of  his  life  He  had  sustained  him,  and  he  now  confided  his  all  to 
Him.  He  bore  his  sickness  with  perfect  meekness  and  patience, 
and  as  his  fatal  disease  disclosed  itself,  he  was  unmoved  and  re- 

14* 


162  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

signed ;  said  he  was  ready  to  die,  and  yielded  himself  to  the  king 
of  terrors  without  a  struggle  or  a  sigh. 

A  member  of  Congress,  who  was  with  him,  said  that  he  died  with 
a  smile  on  his  countenance.  Who  can  describe  the  value  of  a 
religion  which  will  enable  a  human  being,  among  strangers,  far 
from  his  wife  and  children,  thus  to  close  his  life  ?  The  Chaplain 
who  preached  his  funeral  sermon,  after  stating  his  character  and 
giving  an  account  of  his  death,  concluded  his  remarks  by  saying : 
"Mark  the  perfect  man,  and  behold  the  upright,  for  the  end  of  that 
man  is  peace." 

I  have  heard  his  meek  and  humble  voice  at  the  little  circle  of 

our  Congressional  prayer-meetings,  —  it  will  be  heard  no  more 

there,  —  it  will  be  heard  henceforth  in  high  notes  of  praise.      I 

would  that  his  death  might  make  me  wiser !     He  was  just  my  age, 

forty-two.     There  was  no  man  in  Congress  whom  I  esteemed  more 

highly  for  his  moral  worth  and  Christian  excellence ;  and  I  regret 

most  sincerely  that  I  did  not  know  of  his  sickness,  that  I  might 

have  ministered  to  his  comfort,  and  witnessed  his  Christian  spirit. 

God  bless  you  all. 

Thine  ever, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

An  excursion  to  Mount  Vernon  is  the  occasion  of  a 
graphic  and  interesting  letter,  which  will  hardly  bear 
abridgment :  — 

Washington,  May  13,  1838. 
My  dear  Wife: 

I  told  you  that  we  were  going  to  Mount  Vernon.  We  had  a  very 
pleasant  and  interesting  excursion.  The  mansion  of  Washington 
and  the  adjoining  buildings  are  going  rapidly  to  decay.  Unless  pre- 
vented, the  home  of  the  Father  of  his  Country  will  soon  become  a 
scene  of  desolation  and  ruins ;  and  nothing  will  remain  for  the 
ciirious  visitor  to  gaze  upon,  but  the  spot  upon  which  once  stood 
the  dwelling  where  he  lived  and  died,  and  the  lonely  and  dreary 
tomb  where  his  remains  repose.  Human  glory  is  as  transitory  as 
the  monuments  that  are  erected  to  their  departed  possessors !  To- 
day I  heard  Dr. ,  of ,  who  I  understand  is  at  the  head  of  a 


a  preacher's  theology  questioned.  103 

sort  of  seceding  Orthodox  divinity-school  at  that  place.  He 
seems  to  have  made  some  new  discovery  as  to  the  free  agency  and 
moral  accountability  of  men  and  their  dependence  upon  Divine 
influences.  It  was,  I  suppose,  to  be  understood  (as  he  is  a  great 
man)  that  his  sermon  was  very  great ;  but  I  confess  I  got  no  idea 
from  him,  that  I  have  not  heard  presented  from  the  pulpit  since 
the  earliest  dt.ys  of  my  recollection.  That  man  is  a  moral  agent, 
and  an  accountable  being,  that  he  acts  freely,  but  still  that  he  is 
entirely  dependent  on  the  author  of  his  existence  for  all  that  he  is 
or  expects  to  be,  are  truths  beyond  the  power  of  contradiction ; 
but  how  these  things  can  be  reconciled  on  the  principles  of  human 
reason,  is  a  matter  that  has  puzzled  many  wise  heads  and  good 
hearts.  Like  Elder  Leland's  hard  word,  it  had  better  be  skipped 
over. 

No  man  ever  feels,  in  view  of  the  retributions  of  a  future  world, 
that  his  conduct  here  has  not  been  entirely  free  and  voluntary ; 
and  all  who  finally  "  overcome  "  and  have  an  entrance  among  the 
blest,  will  ascribe  the  glory  to  Him  who  has  washed  us  in  His 
blood. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

DECLINES  A  RE-NOMINATION  FOR  CONGRESS— EXTRACT  FROM  ADDRESS  TO 
THE  ELECTORS  —  ILLNESS — HIS  DAUGHTER'S  MEMORIAL  OF  IT  — COM- 
PLETES HIS  FOURTH  TERM  IN  CONGRESS  —  HIS  RE-ELECTION— HIS  HOME 
IN  WASHINGTON— YANKEE  BOARDERS— LETTER  TO  HIS  WIFE  —  ADHER- 
ENCE TO  PRINCIPLE  —  MORE  OF  HENRY  CLAY  —  OBEYS  THE  POPULAR 
VOICE  —  FORTY-FOUR  YEARS  OLD — A  THUNDER-STORM  —  LETTER  FROM 
HENRY  SHAW  ON   HENRY  CLAY'S  DEFEAT  — TRIBUTE  TO  JOHN   LELAND. 

SyURIXG  the  vacation  of  the  Twenty-fifth  Congress, 
and  under  date  of  July  29,  1838,  Mr.  Briggs  carried 
into  effect  his  long-cherished  determination  to  de- 
cline being  a  candidate  for  re-election.  His  position 
in  Congress  was  in  no  sense  a  sinecure.  He  was 
too  honest,  too  conscientious,  too  deeply  persuaded  of  his 
responsibility  both  to  his  constituents  and  to  God,  to  be 
less  than  diligent  in  every  work  of  his  hands.  This  activity, 
and  the  sense  of  accountability  connected  with  it,  made  his 
Congressional  life  in  some  degree  wearisome.  This,  how- 
ever, would  not  of  itself  have  induced  him  to  think  of 
declining  its  duties  and  its  honors,  had  there  not  been  a 

• 

still  more  forcible  dissuasive  from  its  resumption  to  influ- 
ence him.  Upon  this  he  dwells  in  his  excellent  "  Address 
to  the  Electors  of  the  Berkshire  Congressional  District." 
He  sa37s,  — 

"  For  nearly  one  half  of  the  time,  during  the  last  seven  years,  my 
public  duties  have  taken  me  from  my  family  and  my  profession. 
No  man  can  be  insensible  to  the  distinguished  honor  conferred 
upon  him,  in  being  selected  by  his  fellow-citizens  to  sit  in  the 

164 


ILLXESS.  1 G5 

councils  of  the  Eepublic.  At  the  same  time,  no  one  can  duly 
understand  the  sacrifices  which  a  public  man  thus  honored  has  to 
make,  until  he  shall  have  learned  it  in  the  interruption  of  his 
domestic  enjoyments,  the  derangement  of  his  business,  and  in  the 
laborious  discharge  of  his  official  obligations.  In  the  noon-time 
of  my  life  I  hare,  by  your  kind  indulgence,  enjoyed  my  share  of 
the  honors,  and  experienced  the  inconveniences,  which  belong  to 
public  station.  Now  the  claims  of  a  family  rising  up  around  me, 
who  desire  my  presence  and  need  my  counsel,  and  the  propriety 
of  making  preparations  for  the  approach  of  ;  life's  evening,'  admon- 
ish me  that  it  is  time  to  retire  from  public  service,  and  devote 
myself  to  the  humbler  and  more  quiet  duties  of  domestic  and 
professional  life." 

Soon  after  this  u  Address"  was  published,  he  was 
attacked  by  an  illness,  which  speedily  developed  itself  into 
the  most  malignant  form  of  typhus  fever,  and  from  which, 
after  several  weeks,  he  narrowly  escaped  and  slowly  recov- 
ered. 

Of  this  dangerous  illness  the  faithful  and  loving  hand  of 
his  daughter*has  furnished  an  account,  which  must  super- 
sede an}*  record  of  it  from  the  pen  of  another,  and  to  which 
the  biographer  gladly  yields  the  pages  it  fills  :  — 

"It  was  wonderful,  during  the  dreadful  weeks  that  the  fever 
was  consuming  him,  how  by  the  mere  force  of  his  will  he  kept  his 
wavering  mind  from  wild  delirium.  He  always  recognized  the 
first  indications  of  flightiness,  and  would  instantly  recall  himself, 
so  that  through  it  all  he  seldom  lost  the  balance  of  his  faculties. 
His  usual  self-distrust  and  despondency,  when  ill,  attended  him 
now,  though  he  suffered  with  saintly  patience.  He  told  my  mother 
that  he  wished  her  to  tell  his  friends  :  that,  though  his  prospects 
were  not  bright,  he  had  no  apprehensions  as  he  approached  the 
grave.'  How  unlike  this  to  the  calm  radiance  that  rested  on  his 
soul  when  he  did  bow  himself  unto  death !  He  used  to  say,  during 
that  whole  sickness,  that  he  did  not  taste  the  most  simple  nutri- 


1G6  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

ment  without  emotions  of  gratitude,  not  even  a  sip  of  water  so 
refreshing  always  to  the  burning  thirst. 

"  His  faithful  friend,  Mr.  Shaw,  was  a  daily  visitor,  and  some- 
times ministered  to  him  like  a  skilful  nurse.  He  communicated  to 
him,  weeks  after  it  occurred,  the  fact  of  his  re-nomination  for 
Congress,  after  he  had  positively,  in  a  formal  letter  to  his  constit- 
uents, before  his  sickness,  declined  a  re-nomination.  Being  pres- 
ent during  the  conversation,  I  well  remember  my  father's  enfeebled 
appearance,  his  surprise  and  agitation,  and  the  regret  he  ex- 
pressed. '  Oh,  my  dear  fellow,  that  can't  be ! '  said  he ;  and  Mr. 
Shaw,  in  his  pleasant  way,  replied,  telling  him  that  he  was  entirely 
aside,  that  his  friends  had  assumed  the  whole  affair,  and  when  he 
was  well  he  might  acquiesce  with  as  good  grace  as  he  could. 

"  Our  family  physician,  Dr.  Tyler,  though  at  that  time  in  prac- 
tice in  the  north  part  of  the  county,  passed  many  consecutive  days 
by  the  bedside  of  his  friend,  adding  the  genial  influence  of  a  life- 
long friendship  to  the  skill  of  the  physician  in  his  attendance  upon 
him.. 

"  Sorrow,  sickness,  and  death,  in  a  place  like  Lanesboro',  call 
into  exercise  a  sympathy,  and  ministry  of  love  and  kindness, 
which  can  never  be  understood  and  appreciated,  say^e  by  those  who 
are  bred  in  a  purely  country  life.  There  is  no  neighbor  that  does 
not  know  in  the  morning  what  kind  of  a  night  the  sick  man  has 
passed, — whether  he  is  still  'very  low,'  or  'sinking,'  or  a  'little 
better,'  or  '  about  the  same,'  who  '  watched,'  and  a  thousand  details 
which  are  never  dreamed  of  in  large  communities,  where  the 
physicians  and  attendants  alone  know  of  the  slow  and  weary  hours 
that  pass  in  the  sick-chamber.  In  large  communities  the  very 
multitude,  in  the  rush  of  life,  stifles  the  instinctive  sympathy  of 
our  natures.  There  were  few,  far  or  near,  who  did  not  watch 
with  daily  anxiety,  through  the  seven  weeks  of  that  fearful  sick- 
ness, the  changes  little  by  little,  until  their  friend  and  neighbor 
was  out  of  danger  and  restored  to  health  again.  For  a  long  time 
he  was  but  the  shadow  of  himself,  and  one  could  hardly  recognize 
him.  Upon  one  occasion,  indeed,  he  was  mistaken  for  an  old  man 
by  a  lad  as  familiar  with  him,  almost,  as  his  own  children. 

"He  could  hear  no  conversation  or  reading  or  music  for  several 


COMPLETES  MS  FOURTH  TERM.  167 

weeks.  The  first  time  he  left  his  room,  he  came  out  leaning 
heavily  on  the  shoulders  of  his  two  eldest  children ;  and  when,  on 
that  day,  seated  in  the  family  sitting-room,  all  the  household 
gathered  to  receive  him,  he  asked  to  have  the  piano-forte  opened, 
and  to  have  us  sing  '  Golden  Hill '  to  the  hymn  he  always  liked 
in  that  tune  :  — 

"  I  lift  my  heart  and  voice 

To  God  in  whom  I  trust; 
Oh,  let  me  not  be  put  to  shame, 

Nor  let  my  hope  be  lost. 

"  His  mercy  and  his  truth 

The  righteous  Lord  displays, 
In  bringing  wandering  sinners  home, 

And  teaching  them  his  ways." 

All  choked  with  happy,  thankful  emotions,  the  song  ceased,  the 
hymn  yet  unfinished.  It  was  one  of  those  memorable  moments 
when  the  soul  finds  no  voice,  even  in  music,  for  its  utterances." 

Recovered  entirely  from  his  protracted  illness,  he  re- 
turned to  Washington  and  completed  his  fourth  term  in 
Congress,  with  his  wonted  freedom  from  either  self-indul- 
gence or  pretension.  Meanwhile,  in  utter  disregard  of  his 
protest,  his  sensible  and  grateful  constituents  returned  him 
by  a  generous  majority  of  votes,  at  the  Congressional  elec- 
tion of  that  fall,  for  a  fifth  time  and  term. 

Only  a  few  traces  of  his  simple  but  beautiful  life  during 
the  winter  of  1838-9  can  appear  in  these  memorials.  It 
was  natural  that,  with  his  domestic  tastes  and  habits,  and 
no  less  with  his  conscientious  avoidance  of  expensive  liv- 
ing, his  Washington  home  should  be  unostentatious.  He 
boarded,  with  a  portion  of  the  Massachusetts  and  Vermont 
delegations,  in  the  quiet  family  of  a  Virginia  farmer  who 
had  moved  into  the  city.  The  family  was  composed  of 
intelligent  and  agreeable  persons,  with  whom  Mr.  Briggs 
and  his  colleagues  formed  a  very  pleasant  acquaintance, 


1G8  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

ripening,  at  length,  into  sincere  friendship.  The  family, 
in  receiving  these  gentlemen,  came  for  the  first  time  into 
contact  with  Yankees,  of  whom  the}*  had  hitherto  enter- 
tained an  unqualified  horror.  As  Mr.  Briggs  "was  the  first 
of  this  class  with  whom  they  had  an}'  communication,  they 
received  a  very  favorable  impression,  and  concluded  if  he 
was  a  specimen,  that  they  should  be  glad  to  know  more  of 
the  genus.  This,  the  "  Mary,"  mentioned  in  the  following 
letter,  told  the  daughter,  on  their  subsequent  acquaintance 
with  each  other. 

After  their  first  experiment  with  Yankees  as  boarders, 
though  Southerners  by  birth  and  education,  they  always 
preferred  to  have  a  "  mess  "  of  Northern  members  :  — v 

Washington,  5th  Jan.,  1839. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

.......    This  evening,  at  tea,  I  was  speaking  to  Mary  about 

a  fat  hog  I  saw  in  the  market ;  a  fat  porker  is  a  rare  thing  here. 
She  said  she  generally  "rendered  tip"  the  greater  part  of  such 
pork,  and  that  they  used  the  cracklings  for  "pone,"  which,  being 
interpreted,  means  that  they  try  up  fat  pork,  and  put  the  scraps 
into  johnny-cakes.  Since  we  came  here,  they  have  learned  to 
make  minced-meat,  or  hash.  A  few  mornings  since,  Mary  told  me 
that  they  sliced  up  meat  with  a  cleaver.  I  asked  her  why  she  did 
not  use  a  chopping-knife,  and  she  did  not  know  what  it  meant ; 
whereupon  I  went  out,  and  found  a  chopping-knife  and  wooden 
bowl,  and  sent  it  home,  and,  to  her  astonishment,  she  has  found  it 
now  not  half  the  work  it  was  before  to  make  hash.  This  is  a  speci- 
men of  the  manner  in  which  people  in  this  country  do  things. 
Among  the  farming  population,  they  are  much  farther  behind 
Northern  ideas  of  conveniences  than  in  the  cities.  The  farmers  in 
Virginia  have  not  yet  learned  that  potatoes  are  worth  anything  to 


feed  hogs  or  cattle  with. 


In  proof  of  the  unflinching  adherence  of  Mr.  Briggs  to 


MORE  OF  HENRY  CLAY.  169 

any  principle  he  avowed,  and  to  any  practice  based  upon 
principle,  no  matter  how  extreme  might  be  the  temptation 
or  the  inducement,  to  make  of  some  occasion  an  exception, 
is  the  following  incident,  recorded  in  a  letter  to  his  wife, 
under  date  of  Feb.  14,  1839  :  — 

"  Several  of  our  members  expect  to  dine  with  Henry  Clay  to- 
morrow. I  shall  try  and  keep  sober.  A  few  days  ago  I  dined  with 
the  President.  He  asked  me  across  the  table  to  take  wine,  which 
I,  of  course,  declined.  After  dinner  he  came  to  me  and  asked, 
'Are  you,  then,  a  teetotaller?'  and  I  answered,  'I  should  say  I 
was.'  " 

The  admiration  which  Mr.  Briggs  cherished  for  Mr.  Clay 
grew  into  an  ardent  personal  regard,  and  even  affection. 
The  incident  he  refers  to  in  the  subjoined  letter,  addressed 
to  his  nephew,  gave  him  as  much  delight  as  if  he  had  been 
himself  the  object  of  such  popular  regard  and  applause. 

When,  a  few  months  later,  the  ardent  friends  of  the  great 
Kentucky  statesman  were  still  smarting  with  their  disap- 
pointment at  the  nomination  of  Gen.  Harrison  instead  of 
Mr.  Clay,  he  wrote  to  the  same  nephew  :  -. — 

"  I  am  glad  you  have  reconsidered  your  rather  hasty  resolution 

in  relation  to  Gen.  Harrison His  nomination  has 

certainly  been  received  with  great  unanimity  by  the  Whig  partjr. 
For  this  patriotic  unanimity  Henry  Clay  is  entitled  to  the  honor 
and  credit.  He  led  the  way  to  it,  by  giving  it  his  sanction.  None 
besides  Henry  Clay  voould  have  done  it !" 

Here  is  the  letter  referred  to,  written  while  he  was  enjoy- 
ing again  the  charms  and  cheer  of  his  mountain-home,  in 
the  interval  between  the  fourth  and  fifth  of  his  Congres- 
sional terms  of  service  :  — 

15 


]70  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BBIGGS. 

Laxesboro',  Sept.  3,  1839. 
Dear  Alfred  : 

I  see,  in  one  of  the  Cleveland  papers  received  from  you,  ari  allu- 
sion to  the  fact,  that  while  ascending  the  steps  of  the  United 
States  Hotel  in  Saratoga,  the  young  ladies  dropped  a  wreath  of 
flowers  upon  the  head  of  Henry  Clay,  whereupon  they  talk  sagely 
of  monarchical  principles !  The  best  part  of  that  little  wreath 
affair  is  not  told.  At  the  moment  Henry  Clay  left  the  multitude 
that  was  assembled  around  the  hotel,  and  was  ascending  the  steps, 
the  fair  ones  dropped  a  wreath,  unseen  by  him.  It  fell  upon  his 
shoulders.  He  seized  it,  and  in  an  instant  stretched  out  his  long 
arm  and  threw  it  upon  the  heads  of  those  who  were  crowding 
around  him,  saying.  "  This  belongs  not  to  me,  but  to  the  people.' 
In  a  moment,  at  the  utterance  of  this  sentiment  of  true  democ- 
racy, the  air  was  rent  with  the  acclamations  of  the  surrounding 

thousands. 

Your  affectionate  uncle, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  popular  voice,  to  such  a  patriotic  servant  of  hia 
country  as  Mr.  Bricks,  was  not  to  be  disregarded,  even  for 
personal  considerations,  however  urgent.  The  opening  of 
the  Twenty-sixth  Congress  found  him  faithful  to  the  trust 
committed  to  him  at  the  election.  He  carried  once  more 
to  "Washington  a  sound  judgment,  a  fervent  zeal,  a  right 
conscience,  and  a  toiling  hand,  to  use  in  the  interests  of  his 
constituents  and  for  the  broader  good  of  his  country. 

During  this  session  of  Congress  he  reached  his  forty- 
fourth  year,  and  gratefully  commemorates  the  Divine  good- 
ness to  him,  writing  thus  to  his  wife  :  — 

April  12,  1840. 
My  beloved  Harriet  : 

This  day  I  am  fort}'-four  years  old.  These  are  large  figures 
when  applied  to  the  age  of  man.  I  low  rapidly  the  years  have 
flown,  and  to  how  little  account  have  I  lived.  I  don't  perceive  that 
I  grow  wiser.     One  thing  is  true,  whether  I  appreciate  it  or  not,  — 


A    THUNDER-STORM.  171 

every  year  is  a  new  memorial  of  the  mercy  and  kindness  of  our 
heavenly  Father.    I  wish  I  could  "  so  number  my  days  as  to  apply 
my  heart  unto  wisdom."    An  accident  has  occurred  this  day  which 
will  probably  distinguish  this  from  all  my  other  birthdays.    After 
dinner,  Mr.  Hall  and  myself  walked  for  the  fresh  air,  out  of  the 
city,  and,  going  in  the  direction  of  the  landing-place  of  the  Alex- 
andria boats,  which  leave  and  return  every  hour,  we  thought  we 
would  go  down  in  one  boat  and  come  back  in  the  next.     In  the 
mean  time,  a  threatening  thunder-storm  was  rising  and  passing  off 
mostly  in  the  direction  of  Washington,  though  evidently  approach- 
ing Alexandria.     There  being  no  convenient  place  for  shelter  near 
the  dock,  we  were  standing  with  several  others  on  the  steamboat 
dock,  watching  the  advancing  boat,  the  vivid  lightning,  and  the 
coming  rain,  and  speculating  which  would  reach  us  first,  the  boat 
or  the  storm,  —  the  former  fast  steaming  towards  the  dock  from 
the  north,  and  the  latter  advancing  from  the  west.     The  dock, 
which  is  about  twenty  feet  wide,  projects  into  the  river  from  the 
east.     In  a  slip  on  the  north  side  lay  a  small  sloop,  on  which  was 
a  black  man,  busy  on  deck.     The  boat  reached  the  dock  just  as  it 
began  to  sprinkle ;  but  in  the  hurry  of  throwing  the  rope  to  make 
her  fast,  it  fell  short  of  the  post,  and  she  passed  a  little  by,  and 
was  in  the  act  of  swinging  round  on  the  south  side  of  the  dock, 
when  a  most  tremendous  peal  of  thunder  broke  over  our  heads  so 
suddenly  that  no  one  saw  the  flash  that  shivered  the  mast  of  the 
sloop  only  twenty  or  thirty  feet  from  the  spot  where  Mr.  Hall  and 
myself,  with  six  or  eight  others,  were  standing.    All  were  shocked, 
but  none  were  injured  except  the  poor  black  man,  who  was  sitting 
at  the  foot  of  the  mast.     He  was  instantly  killed.    Mr.  Hall  saw 
him  as  he  fell.     The  splinters   from  the  shivered  mast  flew  all 
around  us.   At  the  instant,  I  did  not  think  what  it  was.    It  seemed 
like  a  large  number  of  guns  discharged  back  of  my  head.     I  went 
on  deck  and  assisted  in  throwing  water  on  the  inanimate  body  of 
the  poor  smitten  black  man  —  but  in  vain ;  the  bolt  of  heaven  had 
done  its  office,  and  our  poor  degraded  fellow-mortal  felt  not  the 
dashing  water.    Perhaps  no  sympathies  will  be  awakened  for  his 
fate,  except  that  felt  by  the  white  man  who  claimed  him  as  his 
property  —  who  will  regret  the  loss  of  a  thousand  dollars  in  value. 


172  •       MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

Had  the  blow  fallen  a  few  feet  distant,  wives  and    children  far 

awa}T  would  have  mourned  the  fate  of  those  dear  to  them  above  all 

others.    How  great  are  His  mercies  in  whose  hands  our  breath  is ! 

May  God  have  us  all  in  His  holy  keeping ! 

In  health.     Love  to  all. 

Thine  ever, 

G.  N.  Bhiggs. 

None,  among  all  the  friends  of  Henry  Clay,  felt  more 
keenly  the  disappointment  and  regret  occasioned  by  the 
event  that  deprived  the  Whig  party  of  all  hope  of  seeing 
him  President  of  the  United  States,  than  his  two  warm 
friends  in  Berkshire  County.  Mr.  Shaw,  from  his  chagrin 
and  disgust,  ceased  from  that  period  to  feel  an  interest  in 
political  parties,  —  except  to  amuse  himself  in  playing 
games  with  all,  —  and  quietly  withdrew  from  the  battle. 

Mr.  Briggs,  on  the  contrary,  feeling  intensely  the  ingrat- 
itude of  the  country  towards  its  greatest  statesman,  yielded 
to  the  necessity,  and  with  a  heart  devoted  to  the  good  of 
his  country,  laid  aside  personal  regrets,  and,  like  the  leader 
he  so  much  admired,  adhered  to  the  principles  and  policy 
he  believed  most  sure  to  bring  success  and  prosperity  to 
the  nation. 

The  following  letter  from  Mr.  Shaw,  written  about  this 
time,  marks  the  point  where  their  paths  diverge,  and  is 
such  a  satirical  and  ludicrous  description  of  his  political 
situation  and  career  at  this  time,  that  it  at  once  amuses 
and  saddens,  as  did  very  often  the  words  of  its  remarkable 
author. 

Laxesbouo',  Oct.,  1841. 
Dea£  Briggs  : 

The  time  of  deliverauce  draws  near,  and  you  doubtless  feel 
"good."  You  ought  to,  for  the  country  does.  The  nation,  that 
is,  the  business  part  of  it,  regards  Congress  with  unmixed  dread. 


LE  TTER  FR  OM  BENE  T  SEA  W.  173 

From  the  position  I  occupy  I  see  quite  as  clearly  into  the  future 
as  those  who  are  more  in  a  huddle  and  stand  lower  down.  If  you 
would  or  could,  just  for  a  moment,  climb  up  on  the  fence,  the  pros- 
pect would  fill  you  with  amazement.  You  would  no  longer  wonder 
why  parties  make  mistakes,  or  why  individuals  indulge  in  such 
bitterness  of  feeling.  Their  position  excludes  them  from  a  view 
of  one  another ;  —  however,  you  had  better  not  try  it.  The  rail  is 
filling  up  so  fast,  that  those  of  us  who  got  on  early  are  full  of  fear 
that  it  will  break,  and  we  begin  to  have  our  little  squabbles  about 
priority  of  claims,  and  "  original  fence  men,"  and  the  truth  is,  I 
verily  believe  a  storm  is  brewing  among  us.  Heaven  preserve  us  ! 
for  the  least  agitation  will  bring  us  all  down  in  a  heap.  Although 
we  sit  high  and  feel  far  above  the  motley  crew  that  are  reeking 
in  the  filth  of  the  battle  below,  it  is  clear  that  we  have  our  prefer- 
ences. This  is  manifest  when  either  of  the  parties  make  a  decided 
move ;  its  effects  being  discernible  by  us,  we  show  our  pleasure  or 
fear  or  opposition  by  some  sign  or  remark.  But  you  will  learn 
with  sorrow,  I  am  sure,  that  I  am  losing  ground,  or  rather  rail,  as 
we  say.  My  companions  at  first  regarded  me  with  great  fear,  and 
by  common  consent  I  sat  pretty  well  up  at  one  end,  which  was 
called  the  head  end,  or,  as  you  would  say,  taking  the  lead.  But  it 
has  been  insinuated  by  some  down  the  line  that  I  am  not  entitled 
to  the  least  favor,  for  it  is  said  that  while  I  was  in  the  world 
below  no  one  took  my  advice,  and  that  disappointment  rather  than 
patriotism  drew  me  on  to  the  rail.  Well,  how  to  resist  this  I  know 
not ;  but  this  I  do  feel,  that  I  am  losing  rail  every  day.  One  fel- 
low said  the  other  day,  while  running  up  claims  for  a  hitch  forward, 
that  all  my  fenceism  was  purely  personal,  and  that  if  my  advice  at 
Harrisburg  to  put  up  Clay  and  "Webster,  or  afterwards  to  put  them 
both  into  the  Cabinet,  had  been  taken,  I  should  never  have  shown 
my  face  among  them.  I  felt  mad,  for  the  fellow  had  not  been  on  a 
week ;  he  had  just  got  his  quietus  to  a  claim  for  a  post  office,  and 
set  up  now  for  an  "  original  fence  man."  However,  let  all  this 
pass ;  you  have  your  troubles,  and  don't  want  to  be  bothered  with 
those  of  anybody  else.  This  much  I  will  say :  I  saw  it  announced 
the  other  day,  that  the  Senators  of  the  Whig  party  had  met  and 
solemnly  agreed  that  an  extra  session  of  Congress   must  and 

15* 


174  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  ST.  BRIGGS. 

should  be  held.  I  could  sit  it  no  longer ;  I  fixed  my  heels  firmly 
on  the  rail  below,  raised  my  body  full  upright,  then  leaning  for- 
ward, and  putting  my  hands,  one  before  the  other,  on  the  top  of 
the  rail,  raised  my  right  leg,  and  swung  it  round,  till  it  struck  the 
head  of  the  patriot  right  behind  me,  and  in  this  position  I  was 
arrested  by  the  exclamation  all  along  the  line,  "  He  is  going  off  on 

the  Loco  side,  by  heavens !     He'll  pitch  on  to and ." 

Either  it  was  the  noise,  or  the  nearer  view  my  horizontal  position 
gave  me  of  the  party,  or  the  positive  danger  of  the  fall,  I  cannot 
say,  or  all  combined,  I  was  poised  but  a  moment,  and  with  an 
easy  effort  threw  myself  back  again ;  and,  looking  quietly  back 
along  the  line,  asked  if  any  one  could  do  that,  taking  no  notice  of 
what  had  been  said,  lest  some  one  might  think  my  movement  had 
been  a  serious  one.  However,  I  let  the  thing  pass  ofi",  and  then 
fell  into  a  train  of  reflection,  which  resulted  in  the  conclusion  that 
if  a  party  having  the  Government  by  a  clear  voice  of  the  people 
choose  to  throw  it  away  by  an  act  of  wanton  folly,  they  will  prove 
that  however  splendid  their  talent,  however  pure  their  patriotism, 
they  are  destitute  of  the  tact  essential  to  the  Government  of  our 

people. 

Cordially  yours, 

H.  Shaw. 

This  chapter  can  have  no  more  fitting  close  than  the 
letter  in  which  Mr.  Briggs  pays  a  beautiful  tribute  to  the 
memory  and  character  of  his  much-loved  and  honored 
friend,  the  able  but  eccentric  John  Leland,  whose  earthly 
life  and  labors  closed  together  at  this  period.  He  died  at 
Cheshire,  Mass.,  Jan.  14,  1841,  in  the  eiglny-seventh  year 
of  his  age  :  — 

Washington,  Jan.  23,  1841. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

Good  old  Elder  Leland  has  gone  to  his  rest.  I  don't  know  when 
I  have  heard  of  a  death  that  has  so  affected  me.  His  venerable 
and  patriarchal  form  rises  before  me,  as  I  recollect  him,  while  in 
the  deep  pathos  of  his  great  soul  I  have  heard  him  pour  forth  the 
truths  of  that  gospel  whose  glorious  triumphs  I  have  no  doubt  he 


TRIBUTE  TO  JOIIX  LELAXD.  175 

is  now  enjoying.  From  my  earliest  recollection  I  have  respected 
and  admired  him,  but  I  did  not  know,  till  I  heard  of  his  death, 
how  much  I  loved  and  revered  him.  I  have  always  considered 
him  a  great  man,  but  I  did  not  appreciate  his  greatness  till  I  saw 
how  large  a  space  his  death  has  left  vacant.  When  shall  we  again 
hear  from  the  pulpit  a  man  so  mighty  in  the  Scriptures  as  John 
Leland !  He  was  not  learned  in  the  schools  of  divinity,  though  he 
was  by  no  mean&  deficient  in  a  knowledge  of  polemics  and  theol- 
ogy. He  drew  his  knowledge  of  the  great  truths  of  religion  from 
the  rich,  deep,  original  fountain  of  inspiration  itself.  It  grieves 
me  to  think  that  I  shall  never  again  see  his  venerable  form,  or 
hear  him  "  speak  forth  the  words  of  truth."  In  his  intercourse 
with  the  world  he  was  just.    I  never  heard  of  a  man's  saying  that 

he  had  wronged  him 

A  great  man  has  fallen  in  Israel.  It  will  be  long  before  we 
shall  behold  his  like  again.  I  have  not  time  to  tell  the  thousand 
recollections  and  emotions  that  rise  in  my  mind,  while  I  contem- 
plate his  life  and  death.  He  was  the  good  friend  of  my  father. 
He  baptized  my  mother,  and  preached  her  funeral  sermon.  May 
we  all  meet  him  in  heaven. 

God  bless  you  all. 

Ever  thine, 

G.  X.  BniGGS. 


CHAPTER    XV. 

TWENTY-SEVENTH  CONGRESS— MR.  BRIGGS  MADE  CHAIRMAN  OF  THE  COM- 
MITTEE OF  THE  POST  OFFICE  AND  POST  ROADS  —  POSTAL  REFORM  — 
LETTER  TO  GEN.  SCOTT  — REMINISCENCES  OF  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS  — 
LETTER  FROM  HIM — FAMILY  REMOVAL  TO  PITTSFIELD  —  ENFEEBLED 
HEALTH  — LETTER  TO  HIS  NEPHEW— LETTER  FROM  HENEY  SHAW- 
FRIENDS   UNTO  DEATH. 

T  the  opening  of  the  Twenty-seventh  Congress,  Mr. 
Briggs  received  the  tardy  acknowledgment  of  his 
long,  laborious,  and  eminently  useful  service  on  the 
Committee  of  the  Post  Office  and  Post  Roads,  by 
being  made  its  chairman.  It  is  simple  justice  to 
say  that,  during  the  two  sessions  of  his  chairmanship,  he 
fully  justified  the  opinion  of  his  admiring  friends,  that  this 
position  was  emphatically  his  sphere,  as  affording  him  the 
opportunity  to  complete  and  crown  that  series  of  postal 
reforms,  which  he  had  so  long  and  successfully  pressed 
upon  Congress,  by  the  inauguration  of  a  movement  for  re- 
ducing the  rates  of  postage  to  ten  and  five  cents. 

It  was  his  last  public  service  on  the  floor  of  the  House 
to  make  this  important  effort,  which  he  did  with  a  boldness 
and  earnestness  that  attested  the  maturity  of  his  plans 
and  convictions.  The  Senate  anticipated  the  action  of  the 
House  upon  this  subject,  as  a  step  imperatively  demanded 
by  the  people,  and  their  bill  was  sent  to  the  House  for 
concurrence.  Mr.  Rriggs  promptly  moved  to  amend  the 
bill  by  striking  out  all  its  provisions,  and  substituting 
those  which  were  reported  in  the  bill  prepared  in  his  Com- 
mittee. 

17G 


LETTER    TO   GENERAL   SCOTT.  177 

It  must  have  been  peculiarly  gratifying  to  him  to  hare 
the  indorsement  of  the  House  for  his  plan  without  amend- 
ment. The  bill  thus  passed  was  sent  to  the  Senate,  but 
that  body  absorbed,  during  the  last  two  days  of  the  session,1 
with  executive  business,  did  not  reach  it,  and  thus  it  failed 
of  becoming  a  law,  to  the  universal  regret  of  the  public, 
who  did  not  however  overlook,  or  forget,  the  beneficent 
enterprise  of  the  Berkshire  Representative  in  pressing  it  to 
the  verge  of  success. 

The  following  letter  is  the  only  memorial,  at  the  com- 
mand  of  the  biographer,  of  the  friendship  and  intercourse 
which  existed  between  Mr.  Briggs  and  General  Scott.  Its  - 
chief  interest  for  the  reader  lies  in  the  well-merited  and  in- 
genuous tribute  the  writer  pays  to  the  personal  virtues 
and  official  generosity  of  one  who  had  reached  the  high- 
est pinnacle  of  military  authority  then  instituted  by  the 
Republic  :  — 

"Washington,  31st  July,  1842. 
Dear  General  : 

I  have  just  received  your  note  of  yesterday,  accompanied  by  the 
letter  of  the  Adjutant-General  relating  to  the  case  of  a  private 
soldier,  which  I  brought  to  your  notice  two  days  ago.  I  thank 
you  for  the  promptness  with  which,  in  the  midst  of  your  multi- 
plied cares,  you  have  attended  to  that  case,  and  for  the  investiga- 
tion you  have  made  of  a  sentence  which  surprised  me  by  its 
severity.  Allow  me  to  say,  sir,  that  no  incident,  connected  with 
our  military  affairs  has  given  me  more  pleasure,  than  to  witness 
the  readiness  and  alacrity  with  which  the  head  of  our  army  has 
given  attention  to  the  case  of  a  humble  private  soldier.  I  trust 
when  there  shall  have  been  time  for  the  spirit  and  feeling  of  the  ' 

General-in-Chief  to  be  diffused  through  the  army,  there  will  be  no 

-# 

l  The  bill  was  passed  by  the  House  March  2d,  and  Congress  adjourned  on 
March  4th,  —  when  Mr.  Briggs  closed  his  Congressioual  career. 


178  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  K.  BRIGGS. 

more  such  cases  calling  for  his  interference.  The  union  of  the 
enlightened  and  elevated  soldier,  and  the  man  interested  in  all 
the  concerns  of  humanity,  in  the  person  of  the  General-in-Chief, 
cannot  but  exalt  our  military  character,  and  reflect  a  lustre  on  our 
country.  Believe  me,  sir,  I  should  be  ashamed  to  say  thus  much 
to  you  as  a  mere  compliment.  I  do  it  as  a  slight,  but  sincere,  trib- 
ute to  an  officer  who  is  entitled  to  it  by  the  ready  and  prompt  man- 
ner in  which  he  has  given  his  official  attention  to  the  interest  of 
one  of  the  humblest  soldiers  under  his  command. 

With  sincere  respect,  I  am  yours, 

Geo.  N.  Bmggs. 

• 

The  stainless  purit}r  of  the  public  and  private  character 

of  John  Quincy  Adams,  and  no  less  his  great  attainments 
and  eventful  life,  won  the  veneration,  as  well  as  the  admira- 
tion and  affection,  of  Mr.  Briggs.  His  inflexible  and  fear- 
less adherence  to  principle,  irrespective  of  part}',  made  him 
a  model  in  the  estimation  of  one  who,  in  these  qualities, 
emulated  his  noble  example  ;  qualities  which  distinguished 
the  true  patriot  and  the  incorruptible  statesman  from  the 
scheming  and  managing  politician. 

"I  remember,"  —  says  the  daughter,  to  whose  pen  this  Memoir 
is  chiefly  indebted  for  its  vraisemblance,  —  "I  remember  hearing 
my  father  tell  an  instance  of  his  trying  to  avoid  giving  a  vote 
upon  some  not  very  important  question,  which  came  up  in  Con- 
gress ;  upon  which  he  disagreed  with  Mr.  Adams,  and  did  not 
wish  to  vote  against  him.  He  left  the  Hall  to  evade  the  vote, 
quite  at  variance  with  his  uniform  custom.  The  movement  did 
not  escape  his  argus-eyed  colleague.  The  next  time  Mr.  Adams 
met  him,  he  instantly  charged  him  with  it  — '  You  dodged  the  vote, 
my  friend ; '  to  which  my  father  pleaded  guilty." 

Further  reminiscences  of  the  remarkable  patriot,  in  con- 
nection with  her  father,  are  from  Mrs.  Bigelow's  affluent 

store  :  — 


REMINISCENCES   OF  JOHN  QUINCT  ADAMS.  179 

u  When,  in  1847,  the  requisition  was  made  by  the  United  States 
upon  the  State  of  Massachusetts  for  volunteers  for  the  Mexican  "War, 
a  war  from  which  all  the  feelings  of  his  nature  recoiled,  after  decid- 
ing upon  his  course,  and  acting  upon  it  in  that  most  delicate  exi- 
gency, he  said  to  me  once,  that  he  felt  more  anxiety  for  the  judgment 
of  Mr.  Adams  upon  the  transaction  than  that  of  any  other  public 
man,  and,  to  his  gratification,  the  venerable  man  called  upon  him 
in  Boston,  soon  after  the  adjournment  of  Congress,  and  when  alone 
with  him,  with  the  cordiality  of  a  father,  assured  him  of  his  entire 
approval  of  the  measure,  introducing  the  subject  himself  by  re- 
marking :  '  I  watched  you  with  much  interest,'  and  ended  by  say- 
ing :    '  You  did  right ;  I  thought  you  would.' 

"  He  was  always  most  genial  towards  my  father,  and  they  inter- 
changed frequent  acts  of  kindness  and  courtesy.  While  in  Wash- 
ington, daring  a  bilious  fever  which  shut  up  my  father  there,  after 
the  adjournment  of  Congress,  Mr.  Adams  came  frequently  to  visit 
him,  and  taking  his  seat  familiarly  upon  a  trunk  at  the  foot  of  the 
bed,  talked  in  a  most  agreeable  and  paternal  manner,  encouraging 
him,  and  cheering  the  weary  lapsing  of  those  hours  of  his  impris- 
onment as  an  invalid.  The  note  which  is  here  transmitted,  and  a 
letter  on  an  earlier  page  in  this  volume,  are  brief  memorials  of  a 
friendship  which  it  will  ever  be  a  pleasure  to  remember. 

"  Another  anecdote  of  the  two  is  worthy  of  record.  My  father 
said  to  him  one  day  in  the  House :  '  I  have  been  reading  your 
mother's  letters,  Mr.  Adams,  and  I  see  what  made  you  a  man.' 
Mr.  Adams  laid  aside  what  he  was  doing,  and  began  to  talk  with 
much  interest  about  his  mother,  and  said:  'Whatever  there  is 
good  or  bad  in  me  —  no,  not  bad,  but  whatever  there  is  good  in  me, 
I  owe  it  to  my  mother.' 

"  During  Mr.  Adams's  last  journey  through  Massachusetts,  on  his 
return  from  a  Western  tour,  he  passed  a  few  hours  in  Pittsfield, 
meeting  the  citizens  at  a  public  reception,  at  which  my  father 
addressed  him  in  behalf  of  the  people." 

Here  is  the  letter  to  which  reference  is  made  in  the  above 
pleasing  reminiscences :  — 


180  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.   BR1GGS. 

Quincy,  Sept.  24,  1842. 
My  dear  Sir: 

Nothing  could  give  me  warmer  gratification  than  to  comply  with 
your  kind  invitation,  repeated  in  your  letter  of  the  21st  inst..  to 
attend  your  Cattle  Show  and  Fair  in  the  first  week  of  next  month. 

But  independently  of  the  admonitions  of  age,  and  its  infirmities 
which  daily  thicken  upon  me,  to  withhold  myself  from  all  public 
or  mass  meetings,  and  especially  from  all  at  which  I  should  myself 
be  an  object  of  notice,  even  the  most  flattering;  my  late  constitu- 
ents and  neighbors  have  taken  such  possession  of  me,  since  my 
return  home,  that  I  am  disabled  from  any  excursion,  more  than  ten 
miles  distant,  for  weeks  to  come.  I  have  two  engagements  for 
Boston  for  the  6th  of  October,  which  is  the  second  day  of  your 
exhibition,  which  render  my  attendance  there  impracticable.  For 
the  solicitude  of  nry  fellow-citizens  in  your  quarter  to  see  me,  and  to 
honor  me  with  personal  testimonials  of  their  approbation  and 
esteem,  I  pray  you  assure  them  of  my  heart-felt  gratitude.  Had 
they  no  other  title  to  my  respect  and  esteem,  than  the  continued 
confidence  and  the  oft-renewed  commission  of  trust  to  their 
Kepresentative  in  Congress, — nry  colleague  of  twelve  years'  stand- 
ing in  the  House, — that  steadfastness  alone  would  be  worth  more  in 
my  estimation  than  a  hundred  diplomas.  I  infer  with  much  pleas- 
ure, from  the  firmness  of  your  handwriting  and  from  the  date  of 
your  letter  at  Pittsfield,  that  you  have  entirely  recovered  from  your 
indisposition,  and  hope  to  meet  you  again  in  Washington  the  first 
Monday  in  December,  under  better  auspices  than  those  which 
have  overshadowed  us  since  Sir  Christopher  Sly  was  installed  in 
the  White  House. 

I  am,  dear  sir,  ever  faithfully  your  friend, 

Jonx  Quixcy  Adams. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  next  letter,  written  while  Mr. 
Briggs  was  passing,  at  home,  his  last  Congressional  recess, 
is  not  dated,  as  usual,  at  Lanesboro'.  While  he  was  yet  at 
his  post  in  the  Capitol,  his  family  forsook  their  long-loved 
home  in  the  Boro',  for  a  more  commodious  and  convenient 
dwelling  in  Pittsfield.     The  breaking  up  of  old  associations 


LETTER   TO  II IS  XEPHEW.  181 

was  not  the  only  painful  aspect  of  this  domestic  revolution. 
The  honored  father  came  to  his  new  abode,  enfeebled  by  the 
illness  which  had  detained  him  in  Washington.  His  daugh- 
ter  sa3's,  — 

"  He  was  miserably  low  in  health,  strength,  and  spirits ;  and  was 
as  homesick  as  boy  ever  was  when  pining  under  the  first  banish- 
ment from  the  paternal  roof  in  the  exile  of  a  boarding-school.  The 
kind  hospitalities  and  devoted  attentions  and  social  virtues  of  our 
new  neighbors  and  friends,  greatly  cheered  him  however,  and  con- 
duced directly  to  the  restoration  of  his  health  and  spirits.  From 
this  time  there  sprung  up  a  peculiar  and  intimate  friendship  and 
intercourse  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lemuel  Pomeroy,  which  continued 
unabated  till  death."  1 

His  nephew  Alfred,  who  left  his  hospitable,  and  to  him 
truly  paternal  home,  in  1832,  had  now  after  ten  years  made 
his  abode,  and  was  making  a  name,  in  Cleveland.  His  uncle 
cordially  congratulates  him  upon  the  prospect  opening  be- 
fore him :  — 

Pittsfield,  24th  Sept.,  1842. 
Dear  Alfred  : 

Your  letter  was  received  yesterday.  As  ever,  I  was  glad  to  hear 
from  you.  I  had  seen  in  the  public  prints  complimentary  notices 
of  your  speaking  at  a  large  public  meeting  where  Gov.  Corwin  and 
Mr.  Ewing  were  present.  Ever  since  you  left  me,  in  1832,  I  have 
felt  a  deep  interest  in  your  destiny.  I  have  been  happy  always  to 
learn  that  you  have  maintained,  untarnished,  your  good  character. 
A  reputation  not  growing  out  of  a  well-regulated  moral  character 
may,  indeed,  for  a  while  attract  the  public  gaze,  and  give  its  pos- 
sessor a  currency ;  but  the  time  will  come  when,  like  bank-bills 
that  have  no  specie  basis  to  rest  upon,  payment  being  demanded,  it 

"l  The  memory,"  says  the  daughter,  "of  the  generous  and  courtly  old  gen- 
tleman and  his  noble  and  excellent  wife,  whose  lives  were  so  filled  with  good 
deeds,  will  long  linger  at  the  still  hospitable  old  homestead." 
1G 


182  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BR1GGS. 

will  be  protested  and  found  to  be  fictitious  and  worthless.  I  am 
glad,  always,  to  hear  of  you  that  your  aim  is  to  be  right.  I  always 
hear  with  parental  pleasure  of  anything  to  your  honor,  and,  if 
possible,  feel  a  greater  pleasure  that  I  hear  nothing  to  your  dis- 
honor. You  should  be  careful  that  you  set  not  too  great  value  on 
public  applause.  Though  very  agreeable,  it  is  not  a  pillar  to  be 
relied  on  for  support  in  cases  of  trial  and  difficulty.  When  consist- 
ent with  a  conscientious  self-approval,  it  is  an  agreeable  breeze 
that  bears  the  bark  smoothly  on,  but  is  not  often  to  be  relied  on  in 
the  storm.  Often  the  evil  spirit  of  the  deep  will  cause  the  true 
man's  bark  to  be  tossed  high,  and  plunged  deep  into  the  troubled 
waters.  In  these  matters  I  have  nothing  to  complain  of.  I  have 
had  now  almost  a  twelve  years'  voyage  upon  the  political  sea.  X 
have  however  been  so  inconsiderable  a  voyager,  that  I  was  not 
worth  raising  a  storm  about.  I  am  now  nearly  into  port,  and 
hope  to  meet  with  no  breakers  during  the  short  residue  of  the 
voyage.  I  do  not  intend  to  be  a  candidate  for  re-election ;  I  sigh 
for  the  quiet  and  repose  of  private  life ;  and  hope  to  be  able  to  re- 
gain as  much  professional  patronage,  as  to  enable  me  to  live  com- 
fortably with  my  family  the  remainder  of  my  days.  I  would  fain 
do  good,  and  be  useful  in  the  humble  sphere  where  Providence 
may  place  me.  To  make  much  figure  in  the  world,  I  never  have 
expected,  and  never  expect  to.  If  I  can,  by  the  right  improvement 
of  my  life,  be  prepared  to  surrender  it  when  its  Author  shall  call 
for  it,  I  shall,  I  hope,  not  have  lived  in  vain. 

The  frequent  and  always  familiar  correspondence  which 
marked  the  long  friendship  of  Henry  Shaw  and  the  subject 
of  this  Memoir,  suffered  an  interruption  of  some  years, 
across  which  interval  the  shadow  of  political  differences 
was  projected.  But  it  was,  on  both  sides,  too  sincere  a 
friendship  to  remain  in  permanent  eclipse.  Mr.  Shaw  yearned 
for  the  renewed  companionship  of  one  whose  early  life  he 
had  greatly  influenced  and  often  stimulated.  The  follow- 
ing plaj^ful  letter,  which  has  a  chronological  fitness  for  in- 
sertion here,  will   serve  to  illustrate  this  happy  resumption 


LETTER  FROM  HENRY  SHAW.  183 

of  their  intercourse  through  the  post,  which  was  however 
almost  the  only  medium  of  their  communion,  for  soon  after 
the  date  of  this  letter  Mr.  Shaw  removed  from  Lanesboro' 
to  New  York  —  foiled  and  disappointed,  it  may  be,  in  his 
scheme  for  making  "  a  happy  valley"  by  transplanting  his 
beloved  Mends  into  the  pastoral  haunts  he  loved  so  well : 

Laxesboro,'  Jan.  16,  1843. 
Dear  Briggs  : 

You  will  feel  a  little  surprised  probably  at  reading  this,  for  you 
may  well  wonder  at  my  impudence  in  meddling  with  affairs  that 
are  personally  your  own.  But  I  think  there  remain  some  rights,  to 
be  sure  quite  qualified  ones,  of  mine  in  you.  For  a  quarter  of  a 
century  you  have  had  my  confidence,  and  been  more  or  less  the 
object  of  my  reflections.  Of  this,  however,  we  will  say  no  more. 
You  have  reached  a  period  of  life  when  prudence  requires  of  you 
a  deliberate  review  of  the  past  and  a  sober  judgment  of  the  future. 
You  are  now,  to  a  certain  extent,  unsettled.  You  have  an  encamp- 
ment, but  not  a  home.  Your  public,  not  more  than  your  private 
character  and  domestic  peace,  require  that  you  should  have  a  home. 
You  have  good  agricultural  tastes  and  frugal  habits  —  now  let  me 
obtrude  my  advice.  Come  back  to  the  Boro'  and  buy  a  farm !  You 
cannot  again  renew  your  profession  except  as  a  counsellor,  and 
this  position  would  be  just  as  favorable  to  that  part  of  your  pro- 
fession as  a  village.  Xow  this  is  briefly  my  advice,  and  I  am 
somewhat  moved  in  this  matter  by  the  fact  that  you  could  now 
get  a  choice  of  farms  among  us  at  most  reasonable  rates,  and 
moreover  by  a  strong  desire  to  renew  this  beautiful  valley.  There 
is  another  distinguished  man,  dear  to  me,  who,  I  have  some  hopes, 
may  come  among  us.  Why  not  enlarge  the  number,  and  make  a 
noble  exile  of  worthies,  who  could  meet  and  mourn  together  over 
the  lost  state  of  public  morals. 

Now  compare  an  independent  agricultural  life  with  constant,  but 
easy  and  healthful  employment,  with  life  in  a  laboring,  heartless, 
catch-penny  village,  with  the  fulness  that  makes  the  heart  glad, 
instead  of  milk  bought  by  the  pint.    Look  at  it  all  over,  and  weigh 


184  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

it  well,  and  may  wisdom  preside  over  your  deliberations.  A  good 
farm  with  plenty  of  fine  stock,  a  good  pair  of  nags,  and  a  decent 
carriage,  and  your  time  all  your  awn,  with  the  silver  brooks  run- 
ning through  your  own  meadow,  and  speckled  trout  lying  in  wait 
for  you.  This  is  the  condition  for  ripe  manhood,  and  a  cheerful 
and  quiet  preparation  for  that  old  age  that  is  coming  along —  well 
—  now  —  think  of  it.  Anything  I  can  do  to  forward  a  plan  so 
rational,  so  full  of  philosophic  ease,  not  unmingled  with  a  reasona- 
ble profit,  you  can  command. 

Allow  me  to  add  that  my  family  have  been  consulted  on  this  sub- 
ject, and  this  suggestion  has  received  their  unanimous  approba- 
tion.   All  well  but  Cliff.,  who  has  been  ill  all  winter;    he  is  some; 

better  now. 

Cordially  yours, 

H.  Shaw. 

As  this  is  the  last  letter  from  the  genial  writer  which  is 
preserved  among  the  materials  for  this  biography,  and  the 
name  of  Henry  Shaw  lapses  here  from  its  pages,  as  it  did 
only  a  few  years  after  its  date  from  the  roll  of  the  living, 
an  anticipative  allusion  to  his  death  will  hardly  be  regarded 
as  out  of  place.  He  died  in  Peekskill,  X.  Y.,  in  the  month 
of  October,  1857,  in  the  sixty-eighth  year  of  his  age.  His 
remains  were  conveyed  to  his  old  and  beloved  home  in 
Lanesboro',  and  Mr.  Briggs  was  absent  when  they  passed 
through  Pittsfield.  This  fact  added  to  the  keen  sorrow 
which  he  felt  for  the  loss  of  so  dear  and  faithful  a  friend, 
for  he  often  deplored  it,  saying :  "  It  would  have  been  a 
mournful,  but  nevertheless  real,  satisfaction  to  have  had  his 
cherished  form  rest  under  my  roof  on  its  silent  passage  to 
the  grave." 

With  this  allusion  to  the  earthly  termination  of  a  friend- 
ship persistent  in  its  nature,  pure  in  its  motives,  and  rich 
in  its  mutual  sympathies  and  solaces,  this  chapter  finds  an 
appropriate  close. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

MR.  BRIGGS  NOMINATED  FOR  THE  OFFICE  OF  GOVERNOR  OF  MASSACHU- 
SETTS—  HIS  ELECTION  —  POPULAR  REJOICING  —  HIS  FITNESS  FOR  THE 
POST  —  THE  NEW  GOVERNOR  IN  BOSTON  —  HIS  HOME  AND  HABITS  THERE 
—  WHY  HE  WORE  NO  COLLARS  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  WIFE  —  A  LETTER  CON- 
CERNING POLITICS — POLITICAL  MORALITY  — THE  BERKSHIRE  FESTIVAL, 
1844— GOV.  BRIGGS  PRESIDES  — A  CANE  FROM  MOUNT  PARNASSUS  —  LET- 
TER TO  HIS  WIFE  —  LETTER  TO   DR.  TYLER  —  LETTERS    TO  HIS    NEPHEW. 

(HE  retired  statesman  was  not  long  permitted  to 
hide  himself  in  the  grateful  obscurity  of  his  quiet 
J>^  village  home.  His  worth  in  public  life  was  too 
vividly  realized  by  the  people  of  his  native  State, 
to  give  him  that  respite  from  its  obligations  for 
which  he  really  longed,  when  he  turned  his  back  upon 
Washington  at  the  close  of  the  Twenty-seventh  Congress. 
If  he  needed  rest,  he  must  find  it  in  a  change  of  scene  and 
service,  which  to  many  men  is  quite  as  effectual  for  the 
recuperation  of  their  energies,  physical  and  intellectual,  as 
absolute  repose.  Thus  thought  the  people  of  the  Common- 
wealth, whose  interests  he  had  watched  over  in  the  councils 
of  the  nation,  and  accordingly,  with  the  earliest  movement 
of  the  political  parties  in  Massachusetts  for  the  choice  of 
the  next  Governor,  he  was  put  in  cordial  and  eager  nomi- 
nation by  the  Whigs,  the  then  dominant  party. 

It  is  unquestionably  true  that  no  name  could  possibly 
have  kindled  more  enthusiasm  throughout  the  Common- 
wealth than  that  of  George  X.  Briggs.  It  was  greeted  with 
approval  from  its  seaboard  to  its  western-most  hills.     It 

16*  185 


186  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

carried  with  it,  to  the  quick  recognition  of  the  intelligent 
and  virtuous  population,  a  pledge  of  fidelhVy,  economy,  and 
discretion  in  the  administration  of  the  Government ;  and 
beyond  this  it  stirred  the  hearts  of  Christian  men  with  the 
presage  and  promise  of  a  strong  infusion,  into  the  executive 
influence,  of  that  "  righteousness  which  exalteth  a  peo- 
ple." 

With  these  elements  of  hope  and  confidence,  working  in 
the  minds  and  hearts  of  a  multitude  of  the  great  party  he 
represented,  the  result  of  the  canvass  was  felt  everywhere  to 
be  "  a  foregone  conclusion."  He  was  triumphantly  elected. 
The  State  was  filled  with  rejoicing  at  a  result  justly  deemed 
so  auspicious  to  all  its  highest  interests — civil,  social,  and 
moral.  There  is  a  ring  in  the  tone,  and  a  relish  in  the 
taste,  of  the  general  congratulations  of  the  newspapers  and 
speeches  of  that  period,  which  clearly  individualize  and 
crown  his  election  as  a  speciality  of  public  good.  There  is, 
to  be  sure,  always  an  exultation  of  party  organs  and  ora- 
tors over  a  successful  campaign  and  a  fortunate  candidate  ; 
but  all  this  is  clearly  distinguishable  from  the  intense  and 
pleasurable  and  proud  satisfaction  with  which  the  people 
of  Massachusetts — the  thrifty  farmers,  the  enterprising  man- 
ufacturers, the  honest  artisans,  the  professional  classes,  and 
peculiarly  the  religious  community  —  combined  to  hail  the 
accession,  to  the  position  of  chief  authority  in  the  good  old 
Commonwealth,  of  one  who  had  been  among  her  Represent- 
atives in  Congress,  —  for  twelve  years,  —  like  Bayard  in 
character,  sans  peur  et  sans  repi'oche,  and  like  himself 
chiefly,  in  legislative  fidelity  and  efficiency,  unsurpassed 
and  indeed  almost  unique. 

A  demonstration  of  the  popular  favor  and  approval  so 
decided   as   that   which   quietly  watched   him  voluntarily 


GOVERNOR   OF  MASSACHUSETTS.  187 

doffing  the  robes  of  Representative  rank,  that  it  might  in- 
stantly thereafter  invest  him  with  the  purple  of  its  own 
highest  honor  —  could  not  be  effectually  antagonized  by 
any  measure  of  resoluteness  in  a  bosom  that  throbbed  like 
his  with  unselfish  pulsations.  He  yielded  his  wishes  for 
home-life  and  home-employments,  for  the  already  long  sur- 
rendered happiness  of  his  family  and  fireside  ;  and  prepared 
himself  for  his  new  toils  and  responsibilities  —  thinking- 
more  of  these  than  of  the  honors  with  which  they  were 
linked  in  the  bonds  of  duty  thus  thrown  around  him  by  the 
superior  will  of  the  people. 

Never  went  a  citizen  of  a  free  and  prosperous  and  influ- 
ential and  virtuous  Commonwealth,  up  from  his  coveted 
retirement, 'to  an  uncoveted  seat  of  authority  and  proud 
distinction,  with  less  ambition  for  self-aggrandizement,  and 
larger  aspirations  for  the  popular  weal,  than  did  he  in  obe}T- 
ing  the  voice  of  Massachusetts,  bidding  him  administer  her 
laws  and  preside  over  her  material  and  moral  interests. 

He  was  not  looked  up  to  with  the  almost  blind  admira- 
tion which  splendid  genius  inspires  in  the  multitude.  He 
was  no  demi-god  among  his  fellow-mortals.  They  knew 
him  for  a  man  like  themselves,  and  the  more  like  them  that 
he  was  not  extraordinary  in  intellectual  faculties,  or  mar- 
vellous in  the  wealth  of  suddenly-revealed  resources  for  any 
emergency.  They  knew  him  to  have  sprung  from  an 
almost  obscure  poverty,  and  by  the  persistence  of  his  cou- 
rageous mind  and  honest  heart  to  have  left  that  estate  so 
far  behind  him,  that  he  was  then  and  there  a  peer  of  the 
best  and  noblest  citizens.  They  knew  him  to  be  true  and 
steadfast  in  his  adherence  to  an  intelligent  and  deliberate 
judgment  of  the  right  and  the  wise  and  the  good,  in  the 
great  economies  of  a  self-governing  people.     They  could 


188  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

heartily  trust  him  without  misgiving,  without  jealousies, 
aud  they  put  the  helm  of  the  good  ship  of  State  into  his 
hands,  sure  that  the  compass  and  the  chart  and  the  abiding 
stars,  would  never  be  superseded  in  his  estimation  by  fickle 
theories  and  flashing;  meteors. 

This  is  not  the  place  where  his  successes  as  the  Chief 
Magistrate  of  a  great  and  growing  Commonwealth  are  to 
be  summed  up  ;  but  rather  the  place  whence  we  follow  those 
successes  in  an  impartial  review  to  the  end  of  the  seven 
years  of  his  service,  to  be  then  rewarded,  not  with  the  Leah 
of  a  grudged  and  unloving  approval,  but  with  the  Rachel 
of  a  true  and  heart-felt  applause. 

Very  soon  after  the  year  1844  was  ushered  in,  George  N. 
Briggs  went  to  Boston  to  assume  the  functions»whh  which 
the  State  of  Massachusetts  had  invested  him,  and  hencefor- 
ward he  will  bear  in  these  memorials  the  name  bv  which  he 
is  now  universally  known  —  that  of  Governor  Briggs.  He 
reached  the  city  on  the  sixth  of  Januaiy,  and  it  may  be 
chronicled  as  characteristic  of  the  man  that  he  took  up  his 
quarters  at  the  Marlboro'  Hotel  —  then  distinguished  from 
the  fashionable  hotels  by  its  strict  adherence  to  temperance 
principles,  and  by  the  social  and  religious  habits  of  its 
guests. 

One  of  the  prominent  religious  journals  of  the  city  thus 
alluded  to  this  act  of  the  new  Chief  Magistrate  :  — 

"  If  the  Governor  discovers  as  much  love  of  quiet  and  order, 
and  as  high  a  regard  for  temperance,  religion,  and  the  social  vir- 
tues in  his  official  acts  as  he  has  done  in  the  choice  of  a  home  in 
Boston,  the  public  raay  well  confide  in  the  wisdom  of  his  meas- 
ures. His  deportment  also  at  the  hotel  answers  to  the  description 
we  have  so  often  had  of  him.  He  is  easy  and  affable  in  his  man- 
uers,  takes  his  meals  at  the  public  table,  is  present  at  the  altar 


WHY  HE   WORE  NO   COLLAR.  189 

of  worship  morning  and  evening,  in  the  public  parlors,  and  does 
not  affect  to  be  anything  more  than  an  honest  man  and  a  Christian 
citizen." 

Doubtless  the  simplicity  and  homeliness  of  the  Governor's 
taste  "  in  the  choice  of  a  home  in  Boston,"  so  heartily  com- 
mended by  tie  religious  press,  did  not  equally  commend 
him  to  all  classes  of  citizens.  Some  may  have  set  him 
down  at  once  as  not  up  to  the  times,  and  decidedly  fogyish 
in  his  manners,  especially  in  view  of  the  morning  and  even- 
ing prayers.  But  even  to  this  class  these  things,  at  which 
they  affected  to  smile  or  to  laugh,  must  have  been  the 
tokens  of  that  sobriety  of  temper,  that  solidity  of  charac- 
ter and  that  sturdiness  of  principle  which  they  knew  well 
were  the  safeguards  of  public  as  well  as  of  private  virtue. 
It  is  a  small  item  for  a  biographer  to  chronicle  where  a 
man  chooses  his  lodgings  ;  but  there  is  a  deep  meaning  in 
the  old  adage,  "  A  man  is  known  by  the  company  he  keeps." 
The  new  Governor  of  Massachusetts  kept  the  company  of 
those  who  respected  themselves  and  reverenced  God." 

The  "reporters"  made  him  the  object  of  most  minute  de- 
lineation,— from  his  beard  to  his  bootees,  —  and  especially 
remarked  his  habit  of  wearing  a  black  stock  without  a  col- 
lar.  As  he  persisted  in  this  practice  all  his  life,  and  many 
unfounded  rumors  and  fancies  are  afloat  with  reference  to 
the  origin  of  the  habit,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  set  them  at 
rest.  There  is  a  slight  suspicion  of  truth  in  the  common 
anecdote,  that  he  exchanged  pledges  with  a  friend,  "to 
wear  no  collar  while  he  should  drink  no  gin."  The  little 
truth  here  is  quite  inverted,  however.  Bantered  by  a  friend 
one  day  about  his  total  abstinence  notions  and  his  no-collar 
habit,  he  playfully  rejoined,  that  if  his  friend  would  sign 
the  pledge  and  cut  off  his  queue,  he  would  wear  a  collar. 


190  ME  MO  III   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

He  did  not  wear  one,  simply  from  preference  and  for  con- 
venience. 

As  in  the  course  of  his  Congressional  life,  so  in  that  of 
his  Gubernatorial  career,  his  letters  will  best  reveal  the 
man  —  always  characterized  by  an  agreeable  simplicity, 
and  often  by  a  charming  naivete. 

The  following  letter  to  his  wife  claims  precedence  of 
others,  not  only  by  its  chronological  order,  but  because  it 
contains  a  reference  to  the  wortlry  old  gentleman  (a  warm 
friend  of  the  Governor)  who  is  referred  to  in  the  explana- 
tion just  given  of  the  no-collar  legend  :  — 

Boston,  2d  Feb.,  1844. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

My  performances  to-day  have  been  to  attend  the  Council,  receive 
ten  Indians  as  visitors,  dressed  out  in  the  most  Indian  style  you 
can  imagine.  At  four  o'clock,  went  to  a  dinner  at  Abbott  Law- 
rence's. At  half  past  seven,  went  to  hear  Dr.  Hopkins's  lecture, 
which  was  indeed  a  rich  treat.  At  nine,  went  to  a  party  at  Deacon 
Grant's.  Isn't  this  a  pretty  good  day's  work?  To-morrow  I  am 
going  to  Cambridge,  to  dine  with  President  Quincy.  Tell  Mr. 
Pomeroy  I  go  it  without  collar  or  wine.  "Wine  is  going  out  of 
fashion.  Tell  him  unless  he  comes  in  soon,  he  will  be  more  out  of 
fashion  than  I  am  without  a  collar !  As  for  anything  stronger 
than  wine,  I  have  not  heard  of  any  human  being  drinking  it  since 
I  have  been  in  Boston.  Such  a  thing,  among  well-bred  people, 
belongs  to  a  time  far  back 

The  right-mindedness  of  the  man  whose  life  is  passing 
in  review,  is  signally  and  attractively  displayed  in  his 
letter  to  a  personal  and  political  friend,  whose  creed  in 
politics  was  much  like  that  of  the  bold  Robin  Hood :  — 

"  the  simple  plan, 

That  he  should  take  who  has  the  pcwer, 
And  he  should  keep  who  can." 


A    LETTLR   CONCERNING  POLITICS.  191 

The  morality  of  the  letter  is  lofty  and  exernplaiy,  and, 
illustrated  in  practice,  it  is  as  refreshing  as  it  is  rare  :  — 

Boston,  Mar.  2, 1844. 
Dear : 

I  presume  by  the  tenor  of  your  letter,  that  you  think  that  this 
administration  should  turn  out  the  officers  appointed  by  Gov. 
Morton,  and  fill  their  places  with  Whigs.  This  I  understand  to  be 
the  interpretation  of  your  letter.  I  must  say,  frankly,  I  am  sorry 
to  learn  that  this  is  your  view,  because  I  regret  exceedingly  to 
find  myself  differing  from  one  with  whom,  on  such  subjects,  I 
have  long,  usually  concurred,  and  whose  judgment  I  so  highly 
prize. 

I  believe,  in  the  first  place,  that  to  turn  out  a  single  man  ap- 
pointed by  our  opponents,  merely  because  he  is  not  on  our  side  in 
politics,  when  he  is  faithfully  discharging  his  duties,  would  be 
wrong;  and  in  the  second  place,  that  it  would  be  impolitic. 
When  Gov.  Morton  came  into  power,  he  found  nearly  all  the  of- 
fices filled  with  Whigs,  who  were  appointed  to  the  places  they 
held  because  they  were  Whigs.  He  did  not  displace  or  turn  out 
a  single  man  of  all  those  he  had  the  power  to  remove ;  but  when 
vacancies  occurred,  he  filled  them  with  his  own  political  friends, 
precisely  as  our  own  party  had  always  done.  Upon  what  prin- 
ciple could  I,  as  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  Massachusetts,  now  turn 
out  men  whom  he  appointed  to  offices  that  had  become  vacant 
merely  because  they  belonged  to  another  party,  and  their  Governor 
saw  fit  to  appoint  them  instead  of  Whigs?  The  one  thing  for 
which  we,  as  a  party,  have  censured  the  opposition  most,  is  for 
the  practice  of  that  odious  principle,  "to  the  victors  belong  the 
spoils,"  and  for  turning  men  out  of  office  on  account  of  their 
political  principles.  Since  1811,  I  believe  there  has  not  been  a 
single  instance  in  this  State,  of  a  man  being  turned  out  of  office 
for  such  a  reason.  In  1811,  the  Eepublican  party  did  make  a 
general  sweep — the  next  year  the  people  swept  them  !  Though  I 
should  have  filled  many,  perhaps  all  of  the  places  to  which  Governor 
Morton  made  appointments,  with  different  men  from  those  whom 
he  appointed,  still,  as  he  did  appoint  them,  so  long  as  they  do 


192  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

their  duty  well,  I  cannot  remove  them  from  office  because  they 
differ  from  me  in  politics.  Of  the  correctness  of  this  course  I 
hare  no  doubt ;  and  I  cannot  depart  from  it  without  violating  my 
own  sense  of  right  and  justice.  If  my  friends  should  approve  this 
course,  I  shall  be  glad ;  if  not,  and  they  prefer  to  put  one  in  my 
place  who  would  act  differently,  I  should  retain  the  consciousness 
of  having  acted  according  to  the  dictates  of  my  own  judgment, 
and  that  consciousness,  I  need  not  say  to  you,  would  be  of  more 
value  to  me  when  I  must  render  a  final  account  of  my  steward- 
ship than  everything  else. 

I  have  thus  frankly  given  my  views  of  the  subject,  upon  which  I 
am  glad  to  have  you  express  yours  with  equal  frankness.  This  is 
the  principle  upon  which  I  feel  bound  to  act 

With  much  esteem,  I  am  your  friend, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

In  further  illustration  of  his  political  morality,  a  sort  of 
ethics  which  some  men  account  mythical,  but  which  with 
him  was  a  vital  principle  of  conduct,  is  his  answer  to  an 
invitation  to  attend  a  political  meeting,  deemed  of  great 
importance  :  — 

"  Agreeable  as  it  would  be  to  me  as  a  private  citizen,  to  attend 
your  meeting ;  as  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  the  Commonwealth,  I 
cannot,  with  my  own  views  of  propriety,  clo  so.  During  the  last 
twenty  years  no  one  cause,  in  my  opinion,  has  contributed  so 
much  to  demoralize  the  politics  of  this  country,  both  in  the  Fed- 
eral and  State  Governments,  as  the  prostitution  of  official  power 
and  influence  to  electioneering  purposes. 

"  Against  this  injurious  perversion  of  power,  delegated  for  higher 
and  nobler  purposes,  the  Whigs,  as  a  party,  have  protested.  And 
so  far  as  I  know,  the  Whigs  of  Massachusetts,  when  in  office,  have 
endeavored  to  avoid  an  error  which  they  have  censured  in  others. 
How  can  a  public  officer  so  effectually  promote  the  honor  and  suc- 
cess of  the  party  which  clothes  him  with  authority,  as  by  a  quiet, 
diligent,  and  faithful  atteution  to  the  duties  of  his  station  ?  Be- 
lieving these  to  be  the  views  of  that  portion  of  my  fellow-citizens 
whose  favor  placed  me  in  the  responsible  office  which  I  now  hold, 


THE  BERKSHIRE  FESTIVAL.  193 

I  entered  upon  its  duties  with  a  firm  determination  to  carry  out, 
so  far  as  lies  in  my  power,  in  this  and  all  other  respects,  the  prin- 
ciples which  they  professed.  I  cannot  doubt,  moreover,  that  such 
a  course  will  be  viewed  with  favor  by  the  spirited,  intelligent,  and 
true-hearted  Whig  young  men  of  the  city  of  Boston."    .... 

Of  his  official  messages  and  acts,  during  his  first  term, 
there  are  none  requiring  special  note.  The  impression  he 
made  upon  the  Legislature,  and  upon  the  Capital  of  the 
Commonwealth,  unquestionably  justified  the  many  kind 
things  said  of  him  in  advance  of  his  official  appearance 
there.  He  returned  to  Pittsfield  and  his  home,  having 
won  "  golden  opinions." 

The  "  Berkshire  Jubilee  "  was  celebrated  in  August  of 
this  year  (1844),  and  Governor  Briggs  presided  at  this 
most  beautiful  and  unique  commemorative  festival.  It 
was  a  reunion  of  the  sons  and  daughters  of  that  most 
lovely  region,  not  inaptly  called  "  the  Piedmont  of 
America "  —  a  region  where  hill  and  valley,  lake  and 
streamlet,  alternate  their  charms  with  endless  succession 
and  scarcely  less  variety.  Through  much  of  its  extent 
winds  the  lovely  Housatonic,  its  banks  skirted  with  grace- 
ful elms  and  dainty  maples,  and  adorned  in  the  flush  of 
summer  days  with  the  delicate  clusters  of  the  clematis. 
But  that  the  chief  records  of  the  "  Jubilee  "  are  to  enrich 
this  volume,1  the  biographer  would  linger  a  while,  indulg- 
ing reminiscences  of  its  memorable  delights. 

It  was  celebrated  with  song  and  speech  and  sermon  ;  with 
feasting  and  music ;  with  wisdom  and  wit.  Poets  and 
philosophers  and  divines  and  merchant  princes,  brought 
their  tribute  to  their  Alma  Mater,  and  all  the  village  held 
high  holiday. 

l  See  Appendix,  I. 
17 


194  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

The  literary  performances  were  conducted  at  a  stand 
erected  upon  an  eminence  on  the  edge  of  the  village,  now 
included  within  it,  and  bearing  the  memorial  name  of  "  Jubi- 
lee Hill."  Its  prospects  are  as  beautiful  to-day  as  they  were 
when  the  vast  throng  of  that  occasion  gazed  thence  upon 
their  fair  enchantments  —  or,  as  when  fifty  years  before 
that  happy  da}r,  bright-eyed  bo}^s  and  girls  looked  out  upon 
the  scenes,  little  dreaming  of  the  "Jubilee"  they  would 
keep,  half  a  hundred  years  be}Tond  their  vision. 

With  happy  tact,  Governor  Briggs  presided  at  the  festi- 
val, and  made  a  very  felicitous  address,  which  was  hy  no 
means  the  least  attraction  of  the  day.  He  always  recalled 
the  occasion  with  great  delight,  and  his  name  is  insepa- 
rably woven  with  its  bright  and  beautiful  associations. 

The  successive  winters  from  1844  to  1851,  found  Gov- 
ernor Briggs  in  Boston,  as  surely  as  the  sweet  summer 
intervals  of  all  those  years  allured  him  to  rural,  beautiful 
Berkshire,  and  gave  scope  to  his  trouting  and  rambling 
propensities,  and  no  less  to  his  benevolent  ministries  among 
the  sick  and  the  poor,  whose  homes  were  less  dreary,  and 
whose  hearts  were  less  comfortless,  for  his  words  of  bless- 
ing and  his  acts  of  bounty. 

Glimpses  of  him  in  the  Chair  of  State,  or,  rather,  when 
he  had  exchanged  that  for  the  easier  chair  in  his  chamber, 
or  when  he  was  participating  in  the  social,  philanthropic 
and  sacred  enjoyments  of  the  tri-mountain  city,  are  afforded 
in  his  unintermitted  correspondence,  never  remarkable  per- 
haps for  the  brilliance  that  is  often  meretricious  only,  but 
equally  never  dull  with  oppressive  dignity,  or  vapid  with 
mere  frivolities. 

Among  the  many  memorials  of  personal  regard  and  re- 
membrance which  Governor  Briggs  received  from  time  to 


A   CANE  FROM  MOUNT  PARNASSUS,  195 

time,  few,  if  any,  were  more  prized  than  a  simple  black- 
thorn stick  sent  to  him  from  Greece,  by  an  American 
missionary  in  that  storied  land.  To  the  friend,  who  was 
the  medium  of  communication  between  him  and  the  donor, 
he  thus  writes  :  — 

PlTTSFIELD,  3  Oct.,  1844. 

My  dear  Sir: 

I  have  your  kind  favor  of  the  first  inst.,  accompanied  by  a  beau- 
tiful black-thorn  cane,  which  you  say  is  sent  me  as  a  present  from 
the  Rev.  Nathan  Benjamin,  a  missionary  in  Greece.  In  his  note, 
a  copy  of  which  you  forward,  he  says,  "  This  stick  is  wrought 
from  a  shepherd's  crook,  procured  by  me  at  Delphi.  It  grew  upon 
Mt.  Parnassus."  I  have  no  words  to  express  to  you  how  highly  I 
prize  this  beautiful  token  of  remembrance  from  an  absent  friend. 
A  cane  cut  on  Mt.  Parnassus  would,  from  the  place  of  its  origin, 
be  a  valuable  present ;  but,  when  as  in  this  case,  it  comes  from 
one  of  the  Christian  sons  of  Berkshire,  who  has  left  his  home  and 
friends  to  carry  the  story  of  Calvary  to  the  people  of  that  distant 
and  classic  land,  it  is  inexpressibly  precious.  Mr.  Benjamin  is 
mistaken  in  supposing  I  had  forgotten  him.  I  well  remember  him 
when  a  modest,  serious,  persevering  youth,  by  industry  and  studi- 
ousness  preparing  himself  for  the  great  and  good  work  upon 
which  he  has  since  entered.  May  the  Divine  Author  of  that  re- 
ligion he  has  gone  to  promulgate,  have  him  in  His  care,  and  give 
him  success  in  his  labors.  Most  sincerely  I  thank  him  for  this 
memorial  of  his  regard,  and  beg  you  to  accept  for  yourself  my 
grateful  acknowledgment  for  the  obliging  and  friendly  manner  in 
which  you  have  communicated  it. 

Truly  your  friend, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

His  strong;  domestic  attachments  and  affections  increased 
with  his  years ;  and  his  winter  absences,  in  the  discharge 
of  his  official  duties,  served  to  endear  more  and  more  his 
happy  home  to  his  heart.  During  his  second  term,  in 
Boston,  he  writes  :  — 


l96  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  HRJGGS. 

Boston,  4th  Feb.,  1845. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

In  George's  letter,  received  to-day,  he  says  you  begin  to  com- 
plain because  I  write  less  often  than  formerly.  I  thought  I  had 
written  within  a  day  or  two,  but  I  fear  I  have  not.  Quite  sure  I 
am  that  I  have  never  been  from  home  when  you  were  so  constantly 
in  my  thoughts  as  you  have  been  this  winter.  Every  year  adds  to 
those  ties  formed  now  many  years  ago;  and  as  each  passing  year 
brings  with  it  the  certainty  that  that  dear  union  is  drawing  to  its 
close,  makes  every  day's  separation  to  me  more  keenly  felt.  Our 
grown-up  children,  the  whitened  hairs  that  are  stealing  over  my 
head,  the  departing,  one  after  another,  of  those  loved  ones  with 
whom  we  mingled  in  sunny  youth,  —  all  remind  me  that  we  are 
approaching  the  evening  of  life.  We  began  the  world  poor  and 
humble ;  and  though  riches  have  not  filled  our  coffers,  and  though 
we  have  been  by  no  means  exempt  from  the  ills  of  life,  yet  we 
have  cause  for  everlasting  gratitude  to  that  great  and  good  Ben- 
efactor and  Parent  who  has  watched  over  and  cared  for  us. 
Though  many  of  our  dear  friends  have  gone  down  to  the  peaceful 
grave,  many  yet  remain  to  cheer  us  by  their  kindness.  Of  the 
four  children  God  has  given  us,  three  remain ;  while  He  has  taken 
away  one,  to  loosen  the  ties  that  too  strongly  bind  us  to  the  world, 
and  to  add  one  more  motive  to  stimulate  our  zeal  and  hope  to 
reach  that  bright  world  where  she  now  worships  Him  who,  while 
on  earth,  put  his  hands  upon  and  blessed  little  children.  Could  I 
feel  a  well-founded  assurance  that  in  God's  own  good  time  we,  her 
parents,  with  the  three  dear  children,  should  meet  her  angel  spirit 
and  "  worship  the  Lamb  and  Plim  that  sitteth  on  the  throne  "  with 
her,  everything  else  in  this  life  would  be  comparatively  of  little 
moment.  I  know  this  feeling  may  too  nearly  resemble  that  selfish 
spirit  that  made  the  two  brothers  ask  that  they  might  sit,  the  one 
on  the  right  hand  the  other  on  the  left  hand,  in  the  Saviour's 
kingdom.  Still  it  is  but  natural  that  we  should  feel  more  deeply 
for  the  spiritual  welfare  of  those  nearest  us  on  earth,  as  we  do  for 
their  temporal  interest.  I  have  as  ardent  wishes  to  see  my  chil- 
dren honored  and  prosperous  as  any  parent  ought  to  have ;  but  to 
have  their  names  written  in  the  -'Lamb's  book  of  life"  would  be 


LETTER   TO  DR.    TYLER.  197 

an  immortal  honor,  —  a  rich  inheritance  as  far  transcending  all  the 
riches  and  promotions  of  earth  as  the  interests  of  eternity  tran- 
scend the  transient  things  of  time.  May  we  all  "  keep  our  hearts 
with  all  diligence,"  knowing  that  "  out  of  them  are  the  issues  of 
life." 

In  the  subjoined  letter  to  his  faithful  friend  and  physi- 
cian, he  indulges  in  retrospective  glances,  and  in  such  per- 
sonal reflections  as  were  characteristic  of  his  mind  and 
heart :  — 

Boston,  Feb.  23,  1845. 
Dear  Doctor: 

I  was  concerned  to  learn  a  few  days  since  of  the  illness  of  my 
sister,  W.  I  am  glad  to  know  that  she  is  under  your  care,  as  I  am 
sure  that  everything  will  be  done  for  her  that  can  be.  Will  you 
let  me  know  how  she  is  ?  I  shall  be  anxious  till  I  hear.  I  am  very 
anxious  indeed  to  get  home,  and  have  a  few  days  at  least  of  repose 
and  quiet.  Perhaps  I  have  as  much  ease  as  any  man  in  such  a  sta- 
tion as  I  occupy,  or  as  smy  one  has  a  right  to  expect  in  such  a 
place ;  yet  its  cares  and  responsibilities  are  very  far  from  making 
it  a  bed  of  roses  for  me.  The  responsibility  of  a  public  servant  to 
his  constituents  is  well  calculated  to  make  him  deeply  solicitous  to 
look  well  to  his  steps,  but  a  proper  sense  of  his  accountability  to 
the  Judge  of  all  the  earth,  for  such  a  stewardship,  is  much  more 
fearful  to  one  who  feels  the  want  of  the  requisite  qualifications  for 
such  a  trust.  Though  constituents  may  not  always  appreciate  the 
motives  of  their  agent,  when  his  public  acts  do  not  conform  to 
their  wishes,  yet  he  is  certain,  if  honest,  good  intentions  govern 
his  course,  that  He  who  weighs  conduct  by  motives  will  judge  him 
in  mercy,  if  he  errs  in  the  details,  or  mistakes  the  best  means  of  ac- 
complishing the  end.  When  I  look  around  me,  aud  see  and  feel 
what  is  upon  me  here,  I  can  hardly  realize  that  I  am  the  same  indi- 
vidual who  nearly  thirty  years  ago  spent  such  pleasant  days  and 
weeks  in  your  peaceful  and  happy  family,  in  the  quiet  old  Boro'. 
How  those  scenes  and  the  actors  in  them  have  passed  away !  Still 
memory  lingers  around  them  with  mournful  pleasure,  and  loves  to 

17* 


198  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  Ar.  BRIGGS. 

call  up  one  after  another  of  those  friends  who  have  departed  for- 
ever from  the  earth.  How  often  my  mind,  before  I  am  conscious 
of  what  I  am  doing,  is  found  passing  from  house  to  house  in  that 
beautiful  town,  in  pursuit  of  those  I  loved,  and  scarce  a  dwelling 
is  visited  in  which  death  has  not  made  a  conquest.  Soon,  and  but 
One  knows  how  soon,  some  friend,  in  looking  over  the  list  of  those 
with  whom  he  is  now  familiar,  will  find  your  name  and  mine 
stricken  from  among  the  living.  My  highest  ambition  is,  that 
when  my  poor  name  shall  be  thus  recalled  to  some  surviving, 
absent  friend,  he  may  be  able  to  connect  it  with  some  humble  act 
by  which  any  of  my  fellow-beings  have  in  some  respect  been  made 
happier  or  better  by  my  being  upon  the  earth.  To  me  the  reflec- 
tion is  sad  enough,  that  I  have  lived  so  long,  and  yet  have  so  little, 
if  anything,  to  entitle  me  to  such  a  recollection.  How  infinitely 
more  important  it  is,  however,  that  we  do  something  that  shall 
lead  "  the  Friend  that  sticketh  closer  than  a  brother  "  to  say  to  us 
in  the  great  day  of  decision,  "  Inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto 
one  of  the  least  of  these  little  ones,  ye  have  done  it  unto  me."  .  .  . 

I  am  sincerely  as  ever  yours, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 
To  Dr.  W.  H.  Tyler. 

Here  follow,  in  quick  succession,  two  letters  to  that 
nephew  in  whom  he  took  an  almost  parental  interest,  —  the 
one  a  letter  of  condolence  with  him  upon  the  death  of  his 
young  wife,  and  the  other  a  letter  of  counsel  with  regard  to 
his  entering  into  public  life,  of  which  some  tidings  reached 
him  soon  after  he  arrived  at  home  in  the  spring  of  1845  :  — 

Pittsfield,  28  April,  1815. 
My  dear  Alfred  : 

That  which  we  have  feared  has  come  upon  us.  Margaretta  has 
been  called  home.  When  she  became  yours,  we  esteemed  and 
respected  her  on  your  account ;  but  when  we  knew  her,  we  loved 
her  for  what  she  was.  We  can  hardly  be  reconciled  to  the  thought 
that  we  shall  never  more  be  cheered  hy  her  amiable  and  social 
qualities.  Deeply  the  arrow  pierced  your  heart,  but  it  was  directed 
by  the  hand  of  a  Friend.     Your  loved  one,  who  yesterday  was  a 


LETTERS  TO  HIS  NEPHEW.  109 

Christian  in  a  sorrowing  and  imperfect  state,  to-day  is  a  saint  in 
heaven.  Oh,  what  a  change !  to  her  an  infinite  gain.  Perhaps  the 
thought  is  prompted  by  disappointed  affection,  since  we  have  never 
seen  Margaretta,  but  I  do  indulge  it,  — that  I  may  yet  meet  your 
dear  one  in  that  happy  world  where  friends  will  never  separate, 
and  friendship  be  perpetual.  I  hope  to  meet  and  know  her.  Next 
to  the  presence  of  God  and  the  Lamb,  nothing  would  so  much  pro- 
mote the  felicity  of  those  in  heaven,  as  to  meet  and  recognize  their 
friends  on  earth. 

I  doubt  not,  my  dear  Alfred,  that  in  the  depths  of  your  bereave- 
ment, you  find  consolation  in  that  religion  which  sustained  your 
wife  in  her  long  illness,  and  sustained  her  in  death.  Her  beauty, 
her  refined  and  accomplished  manners,  and  her  kind  and  benevo- 
lent heart,  will  live  in  your  memory  until,  with  her,  you  sink  into 
the  grave.  Then  you  will  meet  her  redeemed  spirit  and  love  her 
forever.  How  blessed  is  that  religion  which  holds  out  to  the 
afflicted  ones  of  earth  such  a  hope  as  this !     This  world  has  no 

such  treasure. 

Your  affectionate  uncle, 

Geo.  N.  Bmggs. 

Pittsfield,  5th  May,  1816. 
Dear  Alfred  : 

I  have  understood  in  some  way  that  there  is  a 

prospect  of  your  becoming  a  candidate  for  Congress  this  fall.  If  it 
come,  let  it  come  of  itself.  I  have  no  fear,  my  clear  Alfred,  of  your 
doing  anything  improper  to  get  a  nomination,  or  an  election.  Let 
any  political  place  or  promotion  be  regarded  as  an  incident,  and 
not  relied  upon.  Do  nothing  in  getting  it,  or  in  it  after  it  is 
attained,  which  cannot  be  looked  back  upon  with  complacency,  or 
in  doing  which  you  may  not  expect  the  approbation  of  Him  whose 
friendship  is  life,  and  whose  loving  kindness  is  better  than  life. 
In  the  vicissitudes  of  your  checkered  life,  my  dear  boy,  I  have  no 
fear  that  you  will  cut  loose  from  the  anchor  of  principle,  to  which 
you  have  held  so  far  in  life,  and  to  which  you  will  hold  fast  and  be 
safe  amid  all  the  storms  that  may  toss  you  on  the  ocean  of  life. 

May  you  have  many  years  of  prosperity  and  happiness. 

Affectionately  your  friend  and  uncle, 

G.  jST.  Briggs. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

HIS  DAUGHTER'S  MARRIAGE  —  HIS  SON-IN-LAW —  ARDENT  FRIENDSHIP  —  A 
WIFE'S  "IN  MEMOKIAM"  —  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  IN  HER  NEW 
HOME  — LETTER  TO  II IS  SON  —  POOR  DOG  TRAY  —  A  SHORT  AND  SIMPLE 
ANNAL  —  TEACHERS'  INSTITUTE  —  POLITICAL  CONFLICT  — HIS  RE-ELEC- 
TION—  A  MECHANIC'S  GIFT  —  HIS  LETTER  OF  ACCEPTANCE  —  A  TOAST 
SPEECH  — LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  —  NOTE  FROM  AMOS  LAWRENCE  — 
REMINISCENCE  OF  A  VETERAN  —  AN  ALBUM  LETTER — HIS  SON-IN-LAW 
INJURED  —  LETTER  TO   HIS  DAUGHTER. 

=/HE  chief  incident  in  the  experience  of  Gov.  Briggs 
[5J  during  his  second  year  of  office  was  the  marriage 
of  his  daughter  Harriet.  She  was  his  only  daugh- 
ter, and  so  much  the  light  of  his  home  that  not  all 
the  happy  circumstances  in  which  she  was  about  to 
leave  it,  availed  to  hide  from  him  the  shadows  which  her 
departure  would  cast  over  it.  In  September  of  1845  she 
was  married  to  Capt.  Charles  H.  Bigelow,  of  the  United 
States  Engineers  ;  and  although  the  son-in-law  was  wel- 
comed by  the  father  with  all  the  sincerity  of  regard  due  to 
his  personal  attractions,  his  moral  worth,  and  his  now  inti- 
mate connection  with  his  family,  —  there  was  a  pang  at  the 
father's  heart  while  he  felt  in  advance  the  separation  to 
come,  and  knew  that  henceforward  there  was  to  be  some 
one  nearer  to  his  beloved  daughter's  heart  than  himself. 

Captain  Bigelow  was,  indeed,  a  man  to  win  the  confidence 
and  admiration  and  love  of  a  heart  so  ingenuous  and  child- 
like in  its  outgoings  as  that  of  his  father-in-law.  He  was 
of  most  prepossessing  appearance,  and  of  manners  not  less 

200 


AltDEXT  FRIEXDSniP.  201 

fascinating.  His  intellectual  powers  were  large  and  brill- 
iant. He  excelled  in  conversation,  and  displayed,  without 
ostentation,  the  richness  of  those  stores  of  knowledge  which 
he  had  laid  up.  "When  to  this  it  is  added  that  his  character 
was  as  charming  as  his  personal  graces,  —  elevated  by  true 
piety  and  disciplined  by  self-control,  —  it  will  not  be  ques- 
tioned that  he  was  made  lovingly  welcome  to  his  happy 
fortune,  even  by  the  father,  who  said  to  an  old  friend,  a 
day  or  two  after  the  wedding  and  the  departure,  while  the 
quick  tears  stood  in  his  e}"es,  "  It  makes  a  baby  of  me." 

The  tender  intimacy  and  affection  which  grew  up  between 
the  father-in-law  and  the  son-in-law,  is  to  this  hour  one 
of  the  most  cherished  and  sacred  memories  in  the  two 
homes,  which  in  less  than  a  short  score  of  years  were  so 
deeply  overshadowed,  in  quick  and  sad  succession,  by  the 
death  first  of  the  one  and  then  of  the  other. 

The  hand  of  the  one  who  felt  this  double  bereavement 
most  keenly  of  all  those  whom  it  afflicted,  has  traced  for 
these  pages  a  memorial  of  that  affection  most  touching  and 
beautiful ;  and  although  it  carries  the  reader  many  years 
forward  in  this  life-history,  the  volume  can  afford  no  more 
appropriate  place  for  its  insertion  than  this,  which  brings 
it  into  juxtaposition  with  the  biographer's  words  concern- 
ing the  noble  subject  of  its  loving  tribute  :  — 

"  The  deep  and  fond  affection  which  years  ripened  between  my 
father  and  his  son-in-law.  Capt.  Charles  H.  Bigelow,  was  of  an 
extraordinary  type,  and  had  in  it  the  tenderness  and  fervor  of  a 
woman's  love,  combined  with  the  manliness  of  their  own.  Capt. 
Bigelow  won  the  faith  and  affection  and  admiration  of  all  who 
knew  him  intimately.  He  was  so  true  to  all  that  elevates  and 
ennobles  man,  that  wherever  he  took  his  place,  all  felt  his  power. 
^ot  alone  his  brilliant  intellect  or  his  learning,  or  his  strength  of 
character  and  intensely  active   energies,   or  his   conversational 


202  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

talents,  —but  the  transparent  truth  and  honesty  of  his  nature,  his 
whole-heartedness  in  whatever  he  undertook,  his  kindness  and 
gentleness,  and  his  piety  towards  God,  rendered  him  to  my  father 
beloved  and  respected.  Hours  after  hours  of  the  days  of  their 
delightful  friendship  they  passed  in  talking,  sitting  in  the  quiet  of 
their  own  homes,  walking  over  the  fields,  or  driving  through  the 
valleys  of  the  Merrimack  or  over  the  hills  of  Berkshire.  These 
conversations  were  among  the  chief  joys  of  both.  Acting  and 
reacting  on  each  other,  so  unlike  in  many  respects,  and  yet  so 
sympathetic  and  so  assimilated  in  opinions  and  tastes,  —  Capt.  B., 
proud  yet  so  humble,  self-reliant  yet  so  self-depreciating,  gener- 
ous, impulsive,  passionate,  fearless,  frank,  imaginative, — literally 
frolicsome  as  a  boy  and  loving  as  a  child ;  my  father  loved  and 
moulded  him  after  his  own  sweet  nature,  so  that  they  had  one  heart. 
My  father  gave  him,  as  he  himself  acknowledged,  his  first  impulse 
towards  true  benevolence.  He  said  that  until  he  came  to  know 
intimately  my  father's  life,  the  duty  of  benevolence  had  been  with 
him  very  much  an  intellectual  conviction  only.  As  in  the  Saviour, 
he  saw  and  felt  the  beauty  and  power  of  a  fife  of  love,  and  was 
himself  transformed  into  the  same  image. 

"  Xo  occurrence  during  my  father's  last  hours  so  overcame  and 
unmanned  him  as  meeting  this  son.  He  folded  him  to  his  breast 
as  a  mother  folds  to  hers  the  child  of  her  love.  Those  who  saw 
his  head  bowed  upon  the  bosom  heaving  with  a  strong  man's 
emotion,  felt  how  '  they  loved  one  another.'  They  had  often 
talked  of  death,  and  Capt.  Bigelow  had  twice  been  saved  from 
what  seemed  to  be  inevitable  destruction.  I  am  sure  that  none  of 
his  children  were  nearer  to  my  father's  heart  than  '  Charles.' 

"  Standing  by  the  silent  form  of  one  he  loved  so  well,  the  vision 
of  his  new  life  opening  through  the  veiled  white  presence  and 
closed  eyes  before  us,  the  triumph  of  death  achieved,  that  son  still 
in  his  strength  and  amid  the  earnest  strife  of  human  events, 
exclaimed,  with  strong  emotion,  '  He  is  to  be  envied! '  Six  short 
months  after,  the  two  were  laid  side  by  side.  « They  sleep 
well.'  Very  lovely  and  pleasant  were  they  in  their  lives,  and  in 
death  they  are  not  divided." 


LETTER    TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  IN  HER  NEW   HOME.      203 

The  following  letter  was  the  first  the  glad,  yet  grieving, 
father  addressed  to  his  daughter  in  her  new  home.  Of  the 
poor  girl,  who  is  mentioned  in  it,  these  memorials  will  here- 
after afford  a  more  extended  notice  :  — 

PlTTSFIELD,  12  Oct.,  1845. 

My  dear  "Daughter  : 

Here  we  are  ("but  we  are  not  all  here"),  quiet  and  peaceful 
within,  while  the  storm  beats  without.  All  pretty  well  except 
Henry,  who  has  ague  in  the  face.  He  has  suffered  extremely;  but 
we  hope  the  worst  is  over.  Things  go  on  much  as  usual ;  neigh- 
bors all  well.  This  morning  I  called  to  see  Jane.  Poor  girl !  it 
seems  as  if  she  were  going  soon.  She  has  had  a  bad  week.  All 
the  family,  or  rather  both  families,  have  been  sick,  except  the  old 
l^dy.  I  said  to  her,  "  Jane,  our  prospect  would  be  a  gloomy  one,  if 
we  could  not  look  forward  to  a  better  world  than  this."  She  raised 
those  beautiful,  clear  blue  eyes,  and  with  a  smile  that  seemed  not 
of  earth,  said  "  Yes."  I  asked  her  what  she  thought  of  her  recov- 
ery. She  said  the  doctor  told  her  last  Sunday  there  was  no  hope 
for  her.  I  inquired  if  she  wished  to  get  well.  She  said,  "  I  should 
be  glad  to  get  well,  but  I  hope  I  am  resigned  to  the  will  of  God." 
In  answer  to  another  question,  which  she  understood  to  be  an 
inquiry  about  her  future,  she  said,  in  a  tone  and  manner  deeply 
affecting,  "  I  think  I  shall  be  at  rest."  Oh,  I  thought,  could  the 
man  absorbed  in  the  pursuit  of  wealth,  the  man  insane  with  am- 
bition, hear  the  response  of  this  lovely  child,  like  the  opening 
rose-bud,  fading  and  drooping  before  its  freshness  and  fragrance 
were  fully  known,  —  what  a  lesson  it  would  be  to  him !  I  desired 
that  it  might  be  a  useful  one  to  me.  She  may  live  some  time ;  but 
the  seal  of  the  destroyer  is  upon  her  marble  forehead.  When  her 
frail,  symmetrical  form  and  sweet  face  shall  fall  and  fade  beneath 
his  power,  how  soon  she,  whom  we  now  speak  of  as  "  Poor  Jane," 
will  be  a  radiant  angel.  Queens  and  princesses  and  courtly  ladies, 
who  have  never  looked  into  so  humble  an  abode  as  hers  is  now, 
would  be  amazed  to  see  her  shining  robes  and  happy  spirit  in  the 
home  of  the  blessed. 

I  intended  to  tell  you,  when  I  began,  how  lonely  we  are  to-daj', 


204  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

and  how  much  we  have  missed  one  who  has  been  with  us  since 
the  day  I  looked  upon  her  in  her  "swaddling  clothes,"  in  the 
upper  room  in  the  old  homestead  in  Lanesboro',  down  to  three 
weeks  since.  But  the  thoughts  of  Jane  rose  up  and  rebuked  me, 
and,  sad  though  it  is  to  believe  that  our  home  is  no  longer  to  be 
cheered  and  shared  by  one  so  loved,  still  we  would  not  have  it 
otherwise.  You  have  known  full  well  before  this  that  I  was  entirely 
satisfied  with  the  connection  you  have  formed.  It  is  all  I  could 
ask  for  one  so  dear  to  me.  Everything  about  Charles  is  as  I  would 
have  it.  But  the  consideration  that  crowns  all  is,  that  he  has 
chosen  that  which  the  young  man  who  came  to  Jesus  lacked,  and, 
lacking,  went  away  sorrowful. 

I  want  to  see  all  my  children  prospering  in  this  world,  but  to 
see  them  Christians  is  my  first  great  Avish. 

All  send  love.    Love  to  Charles  and  George  and  all  friends. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  X.  Briggs. 

At  this  time  George  was  absent,  but  not  forgotten.  That 
heart  is  to  be  pitied  which  is  not  child-like  enough  to  be 
delighted  with  the  picture  of  frolicsome  "  Tray  "  :  — 

Pittsfield,  Oct.  30,  1845. 
My  dear  Sox  : 

Your  mother  wonders  what  has  become  of  George.  She  says 
you  have  not  written.  All  things  move  on  here  in  the  old  track. 
We  are  having  a  Teachers'  Institute.  It  has  been  in  session  more 
than  a  week.  About  a  hundred  young  men  and  girls  are  in  attend- 
ance. The  lessons  and  lectures  are  full  of  interest,  and  the 
scholars  are  full  of  zeal.  It  will  do  much  good.  I  attend  regu- 
larly. One  of  the  young  men  asked  me  the  other  day  where  I 
expected  to  teach  this  winter.     Rather  an  ominous  question ! 

We  expect  you  home  a  week  from  to-morrow.  If  you  do  not 
come  your  mother  will  be  after  you.  All  well.  Tray  is  in  fine 
spirits.  He  has  done  two  things  lately  which  have  distinguished 
him.  In  the  first  place,  he  chased  a  cow  out  of  the  yard  with 
great  vigor  and  loud  barking,  but,  unluckily,  just  as  she  got  into 
the  street  she  stepped  on  his  foot,  when  he  came  back  with  a  new 


POOR  DOG   TRAY.  205 

tune,  which  he  played  long  and  loud.    In  the  next  place,  while 

eating  ofl*  his  plate  a  little  chicken  thought  it  might  take  a  crumb, 

when  Traj*,  in  a  pet,  bit  off  its  head. 

Nothing  else  remarkable.    All  well. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Biuggs. 

His  daughter's  hand  has  traced  for  these  pages  a  short 
and  simple  annal  of  poor  Tra}\  It  reveals  the  tender  heart 
of  the  man  who  had  not  onl}^  compassion,  but  affection,  for 
the  humblest  creature  dependent  upon  his  care  and  bounty. 
His  ingenuous  half  apology,  half  confession,  at  the  breakfast- 
table,  might  have  served  for  an  epitaph  in  stone  over  Tray's 
grave.  It  will  endure  as  long,  though  written  upon  "  fleshly 
tablets  "  only  :  — 

"  Few  visitors  at  the  house,"  says  his  daughter,  "  during  the  life- 
time of  this  favorite  of  my  father's,  — the  faithful  Tray,  — will  not 
recall  the  playful,  brilliant  creature.  Seldom  useful  or  unamiable, 
he  entertained  himself  and  others  with  such  a  development  of 
brains  and  heart  and  fun,  as  is  rarely  seen  among  those  less  gifted 
of  his  race.  He  was  a  medium-sized  spaniel,  with  glossy  chestnut 
curls  and  hazel  eyes  —  eyes  so  human  and  tender  in  their  expres- 
sion, that  one  fell  to  moralizing  with  Jacques,  when  '  returning 
their  strange  gaze.'  He  was  my  father's  inseparable  at  home  and 
about  the  village,  and  attended  him  to  Boston  with  other  members 
of  the  family,  and  sat  with  them  to  Whipple  for  a  family  group ; 
and  afterwards  he  was  sent,  as  a  great  favor  (to  Tray  and  his 
friends  !),  to  reside  out  of  town  with  us  at  Lawrence,  in  order  that 
he  might  recover  the  health  and  vigor  which  the  feeding  and  con- 
finement of  a  Boston  hotel  had  impaired.  The  quickness  with  which 
the  instinct  of  the  dog  discovered  my  father's  approach  to  our 
house  in  Lawrence,  on  his  occasional  visits  there,  was  truly 
amazing.  He  announced  him  always  with  a  quick,  sharp  cry,  and 
with  the  greatest  demonstrations  of  welcome  at  the  door  or  win- 
dow, and  often  gave  us  the  first  intimation  of  a  visit  from  him. 

"  Tray,  alas !  was  mortal,  and  we  buried  him  in  a  sunny  nook 
18 


206  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

under  the  elm,  in  the  corner  of  the  yard,  with  fitting  tributes  to 
one  like  him,  — '  beautiful,  faithful,  lamented.'  He  died  the  day 
previous  to  one  of  my  father's  visits ;  and  the  morning  after  he 
said,  at  breakfast,  'I  don't  know  but  I  am  a  fool ;  but  I  have  not 
slept  a  wink  this  night  for  thinking  of  that  dog.'  " 

Immediately  after  the  close  of  the  session  of  the  Teach- 
ers'Institute,  alluded  to  in  his  letter  of  Oct.  30th  to  his  son, 
he  wrote  thus  to  the  gentleman  at  whose  expense  this  truly 
valuable  adjunct  to  the  educatioual  interests  of  the  State 
was  established  and  maintained.  It  has  since  diffused 
itself  and  its  beneficent  influences  throughout  this  Com- 
monwealth and  widely  over  the  land,  vastly  promoting  the 
work  of  popular  education,  and  helping  hundreds  of  }'oung 
men  and  women  in  their  honest  endeavors  to  qualify  them- 
selves for  the  work  of  instruction  :  — 

PlTTSFIELD,  1st  NOV.,  1845. 

My  dear  Sir  : 

The  first  experiment  of  a  teachers'  institute  in  this  Common- 
wealth, under  your  munificent  patronage,  has  been  a  successful  one. 
The  ten  days'  session  of  the  institute  held  in  this  village  closed 
last  evening.  I  am  sure,  if  you  had  witnessed  its  progress  and 
termination,  you  would  have  felt  that  the  money  which  you  have 
expended  upon  it  had  already  returned  a  hundred-fold.  A  hundred 
young  men  and  women  from  the  various  towns  in  the  county, 
ardent  in  the  cause  of  education,  separated  after  the  session  with 
the  delightful  consciousness  that  they  had  been  essentially  bene- 
fited by  the  instructions  which  they  had  received  from  the  excellent 
teachers  who  had  given  them  lectures  and  lessons.  Every  heart 
felt  the  warmest  gratitude  to  the  benefactor  who  had  kindly  fur- 
nished them  this  agreeable  means  of  improvement.  All  praise  is 
due  to  Mr.  Mann,  Mr.  Fowle,  and  Miss  Tilden,  for  their  valuable 
services.  Mr.  Howe,  of  the  grammar  school  in  this  town,  also 
aided  them.  The  whole  public  watched  its  progress,  and  is  deeply 
impressed  with  the  utility  of  the  movement.     Judging  from  the 


POLITICAL   COXFLICT.  £07 

effect  of  the  experiment  here,  I  am  confident  these  meetings  of 

teachers  in  different  parts  of  the  State,  the  present  autumn,  will 

be  regarded  as  an  important  era  in  the  history  of  our  common 

schools. 

I  sincerely  congratulate  you  upon  the  result  of  this  new  effort 

by  you  to  benefit  the  rising  generation. 

Truly  yours, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 
Hon.  E.  D wight,  Boston. 

Political  strife  in  Massachusetts  mounted  hisrh  in  the 
autumn  of  1845,  and,  notwithstanding  the  wide  popularity 
of  Governor  Briggs,  extending  to  not  a  few  of  the  opposite 
party,  who  estimated  his  sterling  virtues  and  inflexible 
adherence  to  principle  as  above  mere  partisan  qualifica- 
tions, the  issue  of  the  election  hung  in  doubt.  "When  it 
was  over,  and  the  incumbent  triumphantly  returned  by  the 
people  to  his  chair,  he  wrote  to  his  son-in-law  a  letter  re- 
markable for  its  allusions  to  his  personal  interest  in  the 
result,  and  which  indeed  must  be  construed  as  involving 
chiefly  the  success  of  the  principles  represented  in  him  :  — 

PlTTSFTELD,  NOV.  13,  1815. 

Dear  Charles  : 

The  election  is  over,  and,  for  the  old  Bay  State, 

well  over.1  Boston  has  outdone  herself.  With  the  difficulties  she 
had  to  encounter,  I  think  she  has  achieved  a  more  remarkable  vic- 
tory than  ever  before.  All  eyes  were  turned  towards  her,  from 
Texas  to  the  St.  Johns.  She  is  Boston  still,  and  Massachusetts  is 
Massachusetts  still.  The  result  shows  a  triumph  of  principle. 
In  this  she  has  covered  herself  with  honor.    Let  justice,  stability, 


l  After  the  election,  when  Father  Taylor,  of  the  Sailors'  Bethel,  read  the 
Governor's  Proclamation  of  Thanksgiving,  after  fervently  and  devoutly  uttering 
the  usual  formula,  "  God  save  the  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts,"  he  lifted 
up  his  flashing  eyes,  and  added,  with  fervor,  "  That  He  did  last  Monday  I " 


208  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

and  truth  be  her  motto,  and  no  matter  how  humble  those  she  puts 

forward,  she  will  prevail. 

Yours  ever, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

Anions;  the  numerous  srifts  which  were  tendered  for  the 
acceptance  of  Governor  Briggs,  and  happily  involving  him, 
from  its  very  nature,  in  no  embarrassment,  and  in  no  ques- 
tion as  to  his  duty  with  regard  to  its  reception,  was  a  pair 
of  spectacles  mounted  in  silver,  the  work  of  a  lad  in  South- 
bridge,  who  accompanied  his  simple  offering  with  the  fol- 
lowing letter :  — 

SOUTHBREDGE,  Dec.  1,  1845. 

Governor  Briggs  : 

WOl  your  Excellency  please  accept  the  accompanying  present, 
as  a  small  tribute  of  respect  for  your  priniciples  in  favor  of  me- 
chanics. Though  not  a  voter,  should  I  live  to  the  age  of  manhood 
I  hope  to  be  correct  in  principle,  and  be  governed  by  those  for 
which  you  have  so  ably  contended.  My  present  is  small,'  but  I 
have  exercised  my  best  ingenuity  in  workmanship,  the  whole 
being  done  by  my  own  hands.  Hoping  that  you  will  find  the  spec- 
tacles useful,  and  that  you  will  live  a  long  and  happy  life,  is  the 

sincere  wish  of 

Yours,  truly, 

TYm.  E.  Foster. 

The  Governor's  reply  to  this  letter  is  worthy  of  a  place 
among  the  choicest  of  the  productions  of  his  mind  and 
pen  :  — 

Pittsfeeld,  12th  Dec,  1845. 
My  young  Friend  : 

When  in  Boston  last  week  I  received  through  my  friend,  Hon. 
Linus  Child,  your  letter  of  the  1st  inst.,  and  a  beautiful  pair  of 
silver-mounted  spectacles  which  you  were  so  kind  as  to  present  to 
me  as  a  tribute  of  respect  to  my  "principles  in  favor  of  mechan- 
ics."   You  say  "  the  whole  was  done  by  your  own  hands."    As  a 


A   MECHANIC'S   GIFT.  209 

specimen  of  finished  workmanship,  they  would  do  credit  to  a 
mechanic  of  any  age.  If  you  are  "  not  old  enough  to  vote,"  the 
beautiful  present  which  you  send  me  exhibits  a  mastery  of  mechan- 
ical skill  that  is  acquired  but  by  few  men,  after  the  practice  and 
experience  of  their  whole  lives. 

The  glasses  fit  my  eyes  exactly.  I  shall  long  keep  them  as  an 
interesting  and  remarkable  specimen  of  the  ingenuity  and  skill  of 
a  young  mechanic  of  my  own  native  State.  They  could  not  have 
come  from  any  donor  that  would  have  given  me  more  sincere 
gratification.  My  ever-venerated  father  was  a  laborious,  honest 
mechanic.  Several  years  of  my  early  youth  were  spent  in  a  hat- 
ter's shop.  The  dearest  recollections  of  my  life  must  be  blotted 
from  my  memory  before  I  shall  cease  to  regard  all  worthy  me- 
chanics with  kindness  and  respect. 

My  young  friend,  I  beg  you  to  accept  my  best  thanks  for  this 
valued  present.  May  you  live  not  only  to  become  an  intelligent 
voter,  but  to  give  your  countrymen  the  benefit  of  your  experience 
and  ingenuity  as  a  mechanic.  By  a  life  of  industry,  temperance, 
and  virtue,  may  you  win  the  respect  of  the  wise  and  good,  and  be 
rewarded  with  honor  and  prosperity,  and  may  you  "keep  your 
heart  with  all  diligence,  for  out  of  it  are  the  issues  of  life." 
Your  obliged  and  grateful  friend, 

George  N.  Briggs. 

At  the  celebration  of  the  fifteenth  anniversary  of  the 
Massachusetts  Charitable  Association,  held  in  Boston,  he 
gave  a  broader  expression  of  his  interest  in  mechanics  and 
mechanical  pursuits  ;  a  part  of  it  is  given  here,  as  imper- 
fectly reported  for  one  of  the  newspapers  of  the  day.  The 
speech  was  made  in  response  to  one  of  the  regular  toasts  : 

"  The  good  old  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts —  as  she  stands  — 
with  all  her  institutions.    May  God  forever  bless  her." 

After  the  music  ceased  his  Excellency,  Governor  Briggs, 
amidst  the  enthusiastic  applause  of  the  whole  assembly, 
rose  to  reply  :  — 

18* 


210  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  &.  BRIGGS. 

"  He  said  that  since  it  was  expected  he  should  speak  for  the  '  good 
old  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts,'  he  was  sure  he  could  say 
she  was  grateful  for  this  notice  which  her  children  took  of  her, 
and  that  she  regarded  this  Association  as  among  the  best  and  most 
worthy  of  her  children.  But  as  to  anything  further  he  hardly  knew 
whither  to  direct  his  thoughts,  in  the  few  remarks  which  might  be 
expected  from  him.  If  he  thought  of  the  character  of  the  .Associa- 
tion and  its  members,  the  sea  of  mechanics'  faces  before  him  told 
what  that  was;  if  of  its  objects,  they  had  been  presented  to-day  in 
the  most  beautiful  language  and  mathemetical  manner  (if  he  might 
be  allowed  so  to  say)  ;  if  of  the  venerable  and  honored  men  who 
had  numbered  themselves  within  its  ranks,  their  names  were 
emblazoned  upon  the  walls,  and  nothing  he  could  say  would  call 
them  more  vividly  to  mind.  He  experienced  emotions  upon  this 
occasion  which  he  wanted  terms  fully  to  express.  But  he  should 
not  be  misunderstood  in  saying  that  he  reverted,  in  thought,  to 
the  time  when  he  too  was  an  actual  mechanic,  and  that,  within  the 
last  hour  or  two,  he  had  felt  more  regret  than  ever  at  having 
ceased  to  be  one.     (Applause.) 

"But  yet  he  could  not  bring  himself  to  follow  the  course  seem- 
ingly prescribed  by  the  theory,  if  not  by  the  practice  of  some,  to 
unjustly  elevate  the  mechanic  at  the  expense  of  his  brethren  in  the 
community.  To  talk  of  mechanics  as  a  class  and  to  undertake  to 
give  them  the  preference  to,  and  set  them  above,  all  other  classes, 
he  knew  his  intelligent  hearers  would  regard  as  an  insult.  They 
were  too  manly,  too  noble-hearted,  to  desire  any  such  thing.  There 
was  no  test  class  in  our  community.  It  was  false  to  pretend  that 
one  existed.  And  as  among  individuals  he  only  was  best  who 
bore  the  best  character ;  so  among  classes,  only  the  one  was  best 
which  did  most  for  our  common  countiy 

"  Who  was  there,  amongst  all  his  hearers,  that  did  not  feel  a 
glow  of  honest  pride  as  he  cast  his  eyes  upon  yonder  honored 
name  (Franklin)  ?  (Cheers.)  What  was  he  who  bore  it  but  a 
mechanic?  A  Boston  mechanic,  too !  (Great  applause.)  Born 
almost  within  a  stone's  throw  of  this  very  spot,  and  brought  up  in 
the  midst  of  the  localities,  around  which  cluster  so  many  associa- 
tions, it  was  his  fortune  nobly  to  sustain  the  dignity  of  his  calling 


LETTER   TO  HIS  DAUGHTER.  211 

and  the  honor  of  his  home.  It  was  related  of  the  family,  that 
Franklin's  father  was  in  the  habit  of  reading  to  his  children  a 
chapter  in  Proverbs,  wherein  was  the  following  verse,  — '  Seest 
thou  a  man  diligent  in  his  business  ?  he  shall  stand  before  kings ; 
he  shall  not  stand  before  mean  men.'  The  children  heard,  remem- 
bered, and  pondered  upon  the  sacred  truths  of  revelation.  By  and 
by.  the  old  puritanical  father  was  laid  in  the  grave,  but  the  effect 
of  his  teaching  remained.  And  finally,  during  the  war  of  the  Revo- 
lution, when  the  American  nation  sent  their  first  minister  to 
France,  it  was  Benjamin  Franklin,  the  Boston  mechanic,  who 
represented  the  republic,  and  '  stood  before  kings'  at  the  magnifi- 
cent Court  of  St.  Cloud.     (Much  applause.)  " 

During  his  third  official  term  of  residence  in  Boston,  he 
writes,  from  his  old  quarters,  it  will  be  seen,  to  his  daughter 
at  Lawrence,  — 

Marlboro'  Hotel,"  Sunday  evening. 
My  dear  Daughter: 

I  intend  to  go  home  a  week  from  to-morrow,  but  the  Legislature 
may  keep  me  longer.  Mrs.  C.  and  I  went  up  the  Mississippi  last 
evening,  and  had  a  pleasant  voyage.1  She  was  much  pleased  with 
the  picture.  I  have  attended  church  twice  at  Mr.  Hague's  to-day; 
preached  once  myself  to  the  Sabbath  school.  I  can't  say  that  I 
talked  like  a  child  to  them,  but  feel  more  as  if  I  had  talked  like  a 
fool  to  them.  I  believe  I  am  getting  too  old  to  talk,  as  it  seems  to 
me  that  I  make  worse  work  of  it  every  attempt  I  make.  As  I 
intend  to  come  to  Lawrence  (for  it  is  Lawrence  now  according  to 
lavf)  before  I  go  to  Berkshire,  I  will,  Providence  permitting,  come 
on  Tuesday  evening 

After  an  address  in  Boston  in  one  of  the  schools,  Mr. 
Amos  Lawrence,  in  a  letter  to  his  son,  says,  "Your 
father  never  made  two  speeches  that  will  tell  on  the  welfare 

i  In  a  visit  to  Banvard's  panorama  of  that  river,  which  was  then  upon  its  first 
exhibition  in  Boston. 


212  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE   X.  LRIGGS. 

of  his  hearers  more  effectively  than  his  addresses  of  ten  or 
fifteen  minutes,  in  each  room  for  the  two  hundred  and  fifty 
bovs  and  the  two  hundred  and  fifty  skirls  of  the  '  Mather 

School: " 

In  a  plaj'ful,  characteristic  note,  of  nearly  the  same  date, 
to  Governor  Briggs,  he  writes  to  him,  — 

Dear  Governor : 

You  see  your  medicine  icorks.      Those   five  hundred  children 

will  be  likely  to  remember  your  last  Saturday's  discourse,  and  the 

events  of  this  meek.     Do  you  need  my  help  to  pick  flowers  ?  —  if  so, 

I  am  at  your  service  to-day.     I  have  been  to  ride,  gloomy  as  it  is. 

Charles  will  come  towards  evening,  if  you  say  so. 

Your  friend, 

Amos  Lawrence. 


The  following  informal  note  from  Col.  Perkins,  was  in- 
closed in  a  letter  to  his  daughter  by  Governor  Briggs,  and 
on  the  inside  he  made  the  memoranda  concerning  its  writer, 
which  are  subjoined.  They  possessed  great  interest  at  the 
time,  and  have  by  no  means  less  now,  that  every  one  named 
in  it  has  passed  from  this  life  :  — 

Temple  Place,  April  19, 1847. 
Dear  Sir  : 

Please  to  remember  that  you  promised  to  patronize  our  Domes- 
tic Theatre,  which  closes  to-morrow  evening.  The  curtain  rises 
at  seven  o'clock,  I  hope  it  will  suit  your  convenience  to  be  with  us 
at  half  past  six. 

Respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

T.  H.  Perkins. 

"TO   HIS  EXCELLENXY,    GOV.   BRIGGS  : 

"  Col.  Perkins  is  eighty-four  years  old.  When  at  a  dinner  on  the 
22d  of  December  last,  at  Plymouth,  he  stated  that  forty  years  ago 
he  called  to  see  a  very  old  man  by  the  name  of  Cobb,  who  was  one 
hundred  and  thirteen  years  old,  and  that  Cobb  told  him  he  remem- 


REMINISCENCES  OF  A    VETERAN.  213 

bered  Perigreen  White,  who  was  born  at  Plymouth,  and  was  the 
first  person  born  in  New  England. 

"A  few  days  before  the  elate  of  this  note,  Mr.  Abbott  Lawrence 
and  myself  called  on  Col.  Perkins,  and  passed  a  half-hour  with 
him.  He  was  in  fine  health  and  spirits.  He  said  on  the  morning 
of  the  Boston  massacre,  which  was  on  the  5th  of  March,  1770,  a 
man  who  lived  with  his  mother  took  him  in  his  arms,  and  he  well 
remembered  the  blood  which  was  frozen  in  the  gutter.  The  man 
took  him  to  three  different  places,  and  he  saw  the  dead  bodies  of 
the  persons  who  had  been  killed  the  night  before  by  the  British 
soldiers. 

"  He  said  he  spent  some  time  in  France  during  the  French  revo- 
lution. He  arrived  there  a  few  days  after  the  fall  of  Robespierre, 
and  was  present  and  saw  the  whole  Revolutionary  Tribunal  exe- 
cuted. There  were  sixteen  of  them.  They  were  brought  to  the 
place  of  execution  in  three  carts,  and  from  the  time  that  the  carts 
stopped  to  the  time  that  the  heads  of  the  sixteen  persons  were 
thrown  into  a  basket,  it  was  only  fourteen  minutes,  of  which 
space  two  minutes  were  occupied  in  removing  and  bringing  up  the 
carts.  He  also  saw  several  members  of  the  convention  beheaded. 
Col.  Perkins  is  a  native  of  Boston.  For  success,  character,  and 
princely  munificence,  he  stands  very  high  in  the  first  rank  in  a 
long  and  honored  line  of  Boston  merchants.  He  is  now  one  of 
the  most  agreeable,  instructive,  and  interesting  men  of  this  city. 
After  alluding  to  many  interesting  occurrences  and  incidents,  which 
he  had  witnessed  in  early  life,  he  patted  me  on  the  shoulder,  and 
said,  in  the  most  cheery  and  pleasant  manner :  '  Governor,  you  see 
that  there  is  some  pleasure  in  being  old.'  The  half  hour  spent 
with  him  will  be  remembered  with  pleasure  to  the  latest  period  of 
my  life.  The  same  afternoon  Mr.  Lawrence  and  I  called  upon  and 
had  a  visit  with  Mr.  Loring,  another  of  the  merchant  princes  of 
Boston,  who  is  eighty-four  years  old. 

"Boston,  April  24,  1847." 

The  relations  between  the  Govwnor  and  Amos  Lawrence 
were  of  an  intimate  nature.  His' old  friend  sent  to  him  the 
album  of  his  twin  granddaughters,  wThose  mother  wa?  dead. 


214  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

begging  him  to  inscribe  a  memorial  within  it.     He  wrote 
the  following  under  the  date  of  September  28,  1847  :  — 

"  My  dear  Children  : 

"  This  little  book  has  been  sent  to  me  by  your  grandfather,  with 
the  request  that  I  would  write  in  it.  I  should  be  glad  indeed  to 
say  a  word  to  gratify  him,  or  that  would  be  interesting  or  useful 
to  you.  You  are  to  him  the  dearest  jewels  on  earth,  because  you 
are  the  precious  memorials  of  that  loved  daughter  of  his,  your 
mother,  who  is  now  a  saint  in  heaven.  To  see  you  grow  up  lovely 
and  virtuous  as  your  mother  was,  would  make  him  happ3r.  May 
our  Father  in  heaven  preserve  your  lives  —  may  you  early  learn 
wisdom,  walk  in  her  peaceful  ways,  and  love  the  Saviour,  so  that 
when  your  grandfather  shall  reach  the  close  of  his  useful  life,  his 
care  and  anxiet}^  for  you  shall  cease,  and  his  body  shall  sleep  be- 
neath that  old  peaceful  oak  now  spreading  its  protecting  arms  over 
your  mother's  grave,  the  virtues  that  adorned  them  shall  live  in 
you." 

In  October  of  this  year,  while  the  great  stone  dam  built 
by  the  Essex  Company,  in  Lawrence,  Mass.,  across  the 
Merrimack  River,  was  in  progress,  a  section  of  the  coffer 
dam  was  carried  away,  and  Captain  Bigelow,  with  several 
other  persons,  were  thrown  with  the  wreck  into  the  river. 
He  was  dangerously  hurt,  and  indeed  received  injuries 
which,  though  not  until  many  years  after,  resulted  in  his 
death.  Tidings  of  this  disaster  called  forth  the  following 
letter  of  sympathy  and  comfort :  — 

Pittsfield,  October  15,  1847. 
My  dear  Daughter: 

We  looked  with  great  solicitude  for  the  mails  of  yesterday  and 
to-day  to  bring  us  tidings  of  Charles,  and  we  have  great  reason 
for  gratitude  to  God,  that,  thus  far,  they  have  been  better  than  we 
feared.  What  a  wonder  it  is  that  Charles  was  saved  from  instant 
death!    Surely,  it  is  to  the  Lord  "that  maketh  a  way  iu  the  sea 


LETTER   TO   LTIS  DAUGHTER.  215 

and  a  path  in  the  mighty  waters  "  that  we  owe  the  deliverance  of 
him  we  so  much  love,  from  instant  destruction.  I  hope  you  will 
not,  in  your  anxiety,  forget  how  much  you  and  all  of  us  owe  to 
Him  who  watches  the  falling  sparrow,  for  that  almost  miraculous 
deliverance.  Let  your  mind  be  stayed  on  Him,  and  trust  in  His 
wisdom  and  goodness  for  the  future.  Xow,  everything  is  as  favor- 
able as  could  be  expected.  For  the  future,  we  have  no  right  to  be 
anxious.  It  will  all  be  ordered  in  wisdom  and  goodness.  Well 
may  Charles  say:  "The  waters  compassed  me  about,  the  depths 
closed  me  roundabout ;  yet  hast  thou  brought  up  my  life  from  the 
pit,  oh,  Lord,  my  God ! "  I  should  have  been  with  you  before 
this,  but  for  your  mother's  feeble  state. 

Tell  Charles  my  heart  is  with  him,  and  I  hope,  in  his  sufferings, 
he  will  be  sustained  by  a  power  far  more  stable  than  earthly  friends 
can  exert.  I  did  not  know  till  now,  for  it  had  not  been  proved, 
he  was  in  my  affections  so  fully  a  son.  He  is  indeed  a  golden  link 
in  that  family  chain  which  binds  us  together,  and  I  hope  and  trust 
that  chain  is  not  now  to  be  severed.  You  have  our  hearts'  desire 
for  speedy  deliverance  from  the  affliction  that  now  presses  upon 
you.  Be  assured,  my  child,  while  your  mother  and  I  live,  any 
suffering  which  you  or  your  dear  husband  shall  feel,  will  be  our 
suffering;  your  joys  will  be  our  joys.  Be  of  good  courage,  and 
trust  that  soon  all  will  be  well.  Our  friends  in  Pittsfield  have 
taken  a  deep  interest  in  Charles's  case,  and  show  great  solicitude 

for  his  recovery. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

HIS  EDUCATIONAL  RELATIONS  — A  CATHOLIC  MIND  —  SELF  ALLUSION  —  CON- 
NECTION WITH  WILLIAMS  COLLEGE  —  TRIBUTE  FROM  PRESIDENT  HOP- 
KINS —  EDWARD  EVERETT'S  INAUGURATION  AS  PRESIDENT  OF  HARVARD 
—  GOV.  BRIGGS'S  ADDRESS. 

N  no  single  aspect  of  his  life,  perhaps,  does  Governor 
Briggs  appear  to  greater  advantage,  or  at  least  more 
to  the  general  surprise,  than  in  his  relation  to  the 
great  educational  interests  of  the  Commonwealth  — 
l£  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest  of  their  exponents.  It 
is  not  indeed  surprising  to  any,  or  especially  creditable  to 
himself,  that  he  valued  education  immeasurably  —  estimat- 
ing wisdom  above  rubies ;  and  yet  even  here,  he  was  an 
exception  to  perhaps  the  majority  of  those  who,  rising  to 
eminence  without  its  aid.  are  apt  to  be  puffed  up  with  the 
proud  but  miserable  conceit  that  it  is  but  a  dainty  crutch, 
which  may  be  depreciated  by  him  who  has  dispensed  with 
it.  None  had  a  truer,  a  loftier  conception  of  the  benefi- 
cence and  beauty  of  education  than  himself,  and  he  would 
doubtless  have  repined  more  at  his  deficiencies  in  intellect- 
ual cultivation,  if  he  had  not  been  happily  hindered  from 
doing  so  by  the  incessant  activities  of  his  mind  and  hands, 
in  the  use  and  improvement  of  all  he  did  know  and  daily 
acquired. 

What  is  remarkable  in  his  relations  to  education,  is  the 
character,  the  breadth,  the  seemingly  intuitive  perceptions 
he  had  of  the  sources  and  methods  and  values  and  correla- 

216 


HIS  EDUCATIONAL  RELATIONS.  217 

tions  of  all  departments  of  this  great  instrument  of  mental 
development  and  growth.  Had  he  been  an  "  admirable 
Crichton  "  for  varied  and  erudite  acquirements,  or  a  Bacon 
for  grand  philosophical  comprehensions  and  inductions,  or 
a  Macaulay  for  historical  lore,  or  a  Story  for  legal  pro- 
fundity, he  would  scarcely  have  displayed,  in  any  of  the 
diverse  spheres  of  his  practical  applications  of  his  limited - 
acquirements  from  books,  a  juster  appreciation  of  the  rela- 
tions of  those  he  grasped,  to  the  occasion  and  to  the  public 
good.  He  was  not  a  theorist,  for  necessity  made  him  prac- 
tical ;  while  his  sterling  sense,  his  active  benevolence,  his 
natural  intellectuality,  and  above  all,  his  conscientious 
piety,  kept  him  far  removed  from  the  impracticable. 

The  schools,  the  seminaries,  the  colleges  of  the  Com- 
monwealth had  among  their  most  distinguished  and  Doc- 
tored alumni,  no  truer  friend,  no  more  discriminating  advo- 
cate than  he  was,  in  public  and  in  private.  His  educational 
speeches,  whether  in  the  public  school-rooms,  or  on  festival 
occasions,  or  at  College  Commencements,  were  wisely 
thought  and  fitly  spoken. 

He  was  the  orator  on  the  interesting  occasion  of  the 
Inauguration  of  the  State  Normal  School  at  Westfield, 
Massachusetts,  and  in  the  course  of  his  address,  he  made 
the  following  happy  allusion  to  himself,  greatly  to  the 
delight  of  his  auditors  :  — 

"  I  can  recall  the  case  of  a  poor  boy  who  once  sat  upon  the  hard 
plank  seat  in  one  of  these  schools,  in  one  of  the  poorest  districts 
in  this  State,  while  his  father  was  toiling  at  the  anvil  for  his  daily 
bread;  who,  under  the  smiles  of  a  kind  Providence,  has  been  hon- 
ored by  his  fellow-citizens  infinitely  beyond  his  deserts,  and  who, 
as  Chief  Magistrate  of  this  Commonwealth,  deems  it  his  highest 
honor  to  plead  for  the  cause  of  common-school  education." 

19 


218  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

His  educational  position  was  remarkable  also  in  its  great 
advancement  be}*ond  the  point  where  most  self-made  men 
are  apt  to  rest,  —  that  of  a  warm  advocacy  and  support  of 
common  and  high  schools,  —  as  independent  of  and  apart 
from  the  great  collegiate  fountains.  Governor  Briggs  was 
never  shackled  by  this  misapprehension  of  the  true  force 
in  public  education  of  the  College.  His  catholic  mind 
grasped  the  great  theory  of  education  from  the  lowest  to  the 
highest  arenas,  and  no  less  surely  and  clearly  the  control- 
ling value  of  the  mainspring  of  all  its  workings,  the  Col- 
lege s}Tstem. 

The  able  and  excellent  President  of  "Williams  College, 
of  which  Governor  Briggs  was  an  efficient  trustee,  and 
often  a  deeply-interested  visitor,  has  so  admirably  deline- 
ated this  educational  feature  of  his  career,  both  in  his 
official  and  in  his  private  life,  —  that  it  may  well  stand  here 
as  his  record,  —  making  any  further  biographical  labor  on 
this  point  needless.  The  reader  will  unite  with  the  biogra- 
pher in  thanking  the  author  for  this  tribute  to  his  friend  :  — 

"Governor  Briggs  was  officially  connected  with  education  dur- 
ing seven  years  as  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Massa- 
chusetts, and  during  sixteen  years  as  a  Trustee  of  Williams  Col- 
lege. 

"  As  Governor,  he  was  more  particularly  interested  in  the  con- 
dition of  the  common  schools  of  the  State.  This  was  partly  from 
their  intrinsic  importance,  and  partly  because  public  attention  was 
at  that  time  strongly  concentrated  upon  them.  Her  common 
schools  had  been  the  pride  of  New  England,  but  through  neglect 
and  consequent  mismanagement, — neglect  probably  from  the  im- 
pression that  what  was  so  universally  praised  would  take  care  of 
itself,  — the  system  had  fallen  behind  the  demands  of  the  age,  and 
was  fa^t  losing  its  efficiency.  School-houses  were  unsightly  anc 
uncomfortable,  teachers  were  poorly  qualified,  their  methods  o: 


TRIBUTE  FROM  PRESIDENT  HOPKINS.  219 

teaching  were  false,  and  private  schools  were  multiplying.  This 
had  led  to  alarm,  to  investigation,  and  to  the  creation — eight  years 
before  the  election  of  Governor  Briggs  —  of  the  Board  of  Educa- 
tion. In  connection  with  this  Board,  there  was  inaugurated  for 
the  State  a  new  system,  especially  in  relation  to  the  education  of 
teachers,  requiring  increased  expenditure,  and  creating  much  dis- 
cussion. It  was  in  the  midst  of  this  unsettled  state  of  things  that 
Governor  Briggs  entered  upon  his  office,  and  he  became  at  once 
the  prompt  and  enlightened  supporter  of  all  measures  tending  to 
the  renovation  of  the  system,  and  as  chairman  ex  officio  of  the 
Board  of  Education,  during  those  critical  years,  his  influence  was 
great. 

"  Of  the  principle  itself,  which  underlies  the  whole  system  of 
common-school  education,  Governor  Briggs  was  always  an  earn- 
est advocate.  In  the  first  report  of  the  Board  of  Education  to 
the  Legislature,  which  he  signed  as  chairman,  that  principle  was 
thus  stated : 

" '  The  cardinal  principle  which  lies  at  the  foundation  of  our 
educational  system  is,  that  all  the  children  of  the  State  shall  be  edu- 
cated by  the  State.  As  our  Republican  Government  was  founded 
upon  the  virtue  and  intelligence  of  the  people,  it  was  rightly 
concluded  by  its  framers,  that,  without  a  wise  educational  system, 
the  Government  itself  could  not  exist,  and  in  ordaining  that  the 
expenses  of  educating  the  people  should  be  defrayed  by  the  people 
at  large,  without  reference  to  the  particular  benefit  to  individuals, 
it  was  considered  that  those  who,  perhaps  without  children  of 
their  own,  nevertheless  would  be  compelled  to  pay  a  large  tax, 
would  receive  an  ample  equivalent  in  the  protection  of  their  per- 
sons, and  the  security  of  their  property.' 

"  This  principle  was  clearly  seen  by  Governor  Briggs  from  the 
first,  and  was  efficiently  carried  out  during  the  whole  course  of  his 
administration.  How  fully  it  was  incorporated  into  his  modes  of 
thought,  and  became  axiomatic  with  him  as  a  statesman  and  a  social 
reformer,  appears  from  the  mode  of  its  recognition  in  a  speech 
near  the  close  of  his  life.  '  There,'  says  he,  '  you  have  it,  a  prin- 
ciple, which,  as  a  law,  has  been  in  force  in  Massachusetts  for 
more  than  two  hundred  years,  and  in  few  words  this  is  it,  that 


220  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

everj'  child  in  the  State  should  be  educated,  aud  educated  by  the 
money  of  the  State.  That  is  the  principle  proclaimed  by  these 
early  adventurers  with  great  earnestness,  when  there  was  an  un- 
broken wilderness  from  the  little  circle  around  Boston  and  Plym- 
outh, to  the  dark  waves  of  the  Pacific.  Three  thousand  miles 
of  ocean  rolled  between  them  and  civilization  and  home.  Before 
them  was  a  dark,  untrodden  wilderness,  save  by  the  moccasined 
foot  of  the  savage  native,  and  they  numbering  a  population  of  less 
than  twenty  thousand.  Thus  circumstanced,  thus  surrounded, 
they,  for  the  first  time  within  the  history  of  human  society  enacted 
into  law  the  principle  that  the  State  should  be  educated  by  the 

money  of  the  State My  assertion  is,  that  there  is 

no  possible  object  belonging  to  community  or  government,  that 
has  higher  claims  on  the  property  of  the  community  than  the  uni- 
versal education  of  children.' 

"  In  carrying  out  the  above  principle,  by  giving  a  new  impulse  to 
common  schools,  the  Board  of  Education  relied  chiefly  upon  the 
labors  of  their  Secretary,  and  upon  Normal  Schools.  To  these, 
however,  were  added  Teachers'  Institutes,  with  lectures  and 
specific  subjects  employed  by  the  State,  and  also  assistants  to  the 
Secretary,  both  permanent  and  temporary,  in  awakening  an  inter- 
est in  the  schools  throughout  the  State.  All  these  were  new,  the 
experiment  of  Xormal  Schools  in  this  country  having  been  first 
tried  in  Massachusetts ;  some  of  them  were  commenced  during 
the  administration  of  Governor  Briggs,  and  questions  of  much 
interest  respecting  them  all  were  to  be  settled. 

"Having  been  associated  with  Governor  Briggs  two  years  on  the 
Board  of  Education,  the  writer  of  this  knows  that  the  Normal 
Schools  were  regarded  by  him  with  great  favor,  and  that  he  sought 
and  favored  the  most  liberal  provision  not  only  in  their  behalf, 
but  also  in  behalf  of  every  collateral  means  by  which  the  cause  of 
common-school  education  could  be  advanced. 

"But  not  only  did  Governor  Briggs  thus  appreciate  and  carry  out 
the  great  principle  of  common-school  education,  he  also  appreci- 
ated fully,  and  sought  to  foster  education  in  its  higher  forms.  Of 
a  liberal  education,  as  furnished  by  our  colleges,  he  was  a  staunch 
and  earnest  advocate.     In  his  speech  at  an  Agricultural  Fair,  he 


TRIBUTE  FROM  PRESIDENT  HOPKINS.  221 

said  '  He  wanted  to  see  the  time  when  there  should  be  none  more 
intelligent  than  farmers,  when  the  farmers'  boys  should  go  to 
Amherst  or  Cambridge,  or  Williams,  and  return  to  their  homes 
prepared  to  settle  down  as  intelligent,  useful,  and  happy  farmers.' 

"  In  this  he  showed  the  largeness  of  his  nature,  and  a  compre- 
hensiveness and  liberality  characteristic  of  his  whole  course. 
Himself  self-educated,  and  well  understanding  that  a  considerable 
party  would  have  been  conciliated  by  his  ignoring,  if  not  oppos- 
ing liberal  education,  he  yet  had  no  hesitation  in  preferring  the 
part  of  the  statesman  to  that  of  the  demagogue,  and  in  laboring 
on  the  broadest  principles  for  the  good  of  the  whole. 

"'I  go,'  said  he,  subsequently,  'for  democracy;  not  that  of 
party,  but  that  democracy  which  elevates  man.  And,  depend  upon 
it,  that  is  the  system ;  nothing  else  will  do.' 

"  He  not  only  saw  the  inseparable  connection  of  education  in  the 
common  schools  with  a  high  state  of  liberal  education,  but  also 
that  the  possible  extent  and  value  of  self-education  must  depend 
on  the  same  thing.  A  self-educated  man  is  one  who  avails  him- 
self of  the  advantages  furnished  by  the  community  in  which  he 
lives  for  knowledge  and  discipline,  without  going  through  with 
prescribed  courses  under  the  guidance  of  teachers.  But  those 
advantages  will  be  in  proportion  to  the  diffusion  among  the  people 
of  the  fruits  of  a  liberal  education.  The  knowledge  that  in  one 
age  is  originated  by  the  learned  and  scientific,  within  the  walls  of 
colleges  and  universities,  becomes  after  a  time  incorporated  with 
the  elementary  forms  of  thought  among  the  common  people.  Ac- 
cordingly, the  common  mind  is  now  unconsciously  educated  by 
Sir  Isaac  Newton  and  La  Place  in  Astronomy,  by  Davy  in  Chemis- 
try, by  Linnaeus  and  Jussieu  in  Botany,  and  by  every  great  thinker 
and  master  of  method  in  the  science  of  politics,  of  morals,  or  of 
mind.  The  rapidity  of  this  process  for  the  masses,  is  modified  by 
various  considerations,  but  under  free  institutions,  with  a  free 
press,  the  whole  community  becomes  like  one  great  university,  and 
it  becomes  possible  for  individuals  happily  born  to  work  them- 
selves up,  without  the  usual  helps,  to  a  high  point  of  culture  and 
enlargement.  Such  persons  may  have  access  through  conversa- 
tion, books,  popular  lectures,  to  all  that  is  known;  but  the  point 
iy* 


222  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

of  elevation  possible  for  them  will  depend  upon  what  has  been 
done  by  those  liberally  educated  who  have  gone  before  them. 

"  The  organic  relation  of  the  different  degrees  and  forms  of  educa- 
tion just  referred  to,  was  well  understood  by  Governor  Briggs, 
and  accordingly,  when  in  1845,  he  was  elected  a  trustee  of 
Williams  College,  he  at  once  entered  heartily  upon  the  duties  of 
that  office,  and  it  may  be  added  that  he  became  more  and  more 
interested  in  them  till  the  close  of  his  life.  It  was  in  connection 
with  the  meetings  of  this  Board,  that  some  of  the  finer  social  and 
moral  traits  of  Governor  Briggs  were  conspicuous. 

"  It  was  not  merely  his  sound  judgment  and  good  business  ca- 
pacity that  made  him  so  welcome  at  the  meetings  of  the  Board, 
but  the  happy  combination  in  him  of  dignity  with  urbanity,  and 
the  utmost  freedom  of  social  intercourse.  He  watched  carefully 
the  course  of  the  business,  and  at  all  its  turning-points  gave  his 
full  attention,  but  when  the  stress  w^as  off  there  was  a  playfulness 
and  an  exuberance  of  the  social  nature,  a  genial  humor  and  an 
exhaustless  fund  of  anecdote,  that  gave  a  charm  to  his  presence 
and  a  social  aspect  to  meetings,  that,  without  such  qualities,  be- 
came merely  those  for  the  dry  details  of  business.  It  was  these 
qualities,  joined  to  his  warm  and  increasing  attachment  to  the  col- 
lege, that  caused  its  friends,  and  especially  the  members  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  to  feel  that  his  death  was  a  personal  bereave- 
ment. 

"  It  is  also  to  be  added  in  this  connection,  that  Governor  Briggs 
was  peculiarly  happy  in  those  impromptu  addresses  so  often  called 
for  at  Commencement,  during  the  progress  of  its  various  meetings 
and  literary  festivities.  As  impromptu,  they  were  the  more  en- 
joyed; but  for  humor,  pathos,  and  high  intellectual  power,  they 
must  have  been  among  his  finest  efforts. 

"  Having  thus  seen  the  attitude  of  Governor  Briggs  towards  com- 
mon schools  and  the  higher  seminaries,  it  remains  to  give  his  view  of 
the  proper  relations  to  each  other  of  intellectual  and  of  moral  and 
religious  education.  This  is  a  radical  question  in  education,  and 
one  on  which  there  has  been  much  diversity  of  opinion.  That  the 
two  should  be  associated  Governor  Briggs  had  no  doubt,  and  he 
expressed  himself  strongly  on  this  point.     '  The  Pilgrims,'  says  he, 


TRIBUTE  FROM  PRESIDEXT     H0PK1XS.  22o 

'brought  with  them  right  ideas  on  this  subject.  The  meeting- 
house and  the  school-house  were  the  two  first  and  great  ideas  that 
existed  in  their  minds  and  controlled  their  conduct.  First,  they 
erected  a  humble  and  convenient  house  in  which  to  assemble  and 
worship  their  Creator.  Xext,  they  built  the  school-house.  Their 
good  sense,  reason,  and  religion  taught  them  that  these  two  go 
together.  They  knew  that  the  mind  of  man  was  naturally  inclined 
to  superstition,  and  that  religion,  which  would  regulate  and  con- 
trol the  heart,  would  not  enlighten  the  mind,  but  that  it  wanted 
educating:.  —  that  the  intellect  and  the  heart  were  to  be  attended 
to.  They  knew  that  the  intellect,  however  highly  cultivated, 
might  leave  the  heart  all  wrong.  Therefore  the  meeting-house 
and  the  school-house  were  provided  to  aid  each  other,  to  overlook 
each  other,  to  ch^eck  each  other,  if  you  please.  In  the  beautiful 
language  of  one  of  our  Xew  England  poets,  we  could  say  of 
them,  — 

1  "  Nor  heeds  the  puny  skeptic's  hand. 

While  near  the  school  the  church-spire  stands; 

Xor  fears  the  gloomy  bigot's  rule, 

While  near  the  church-spire  stands  the  school." 

"  He  desired  the  introduction  into  the  common  schools  of  noth- 
ing that  could  be  fairly  objected  to  by  any  religious  denomination 
who  receive  the  Scriptures,  and  wish  to  have  them  read  by  the 
whole  people.  But  the  Scriptures  themselves  he  would  have  read. 
They  were  the  subject  of  his  frequent  and  almost  impassioned 
eulogy,  and  on  the  knowledge  of  them  by  the  people  he  rested  his 
hopes  of  the  permanency  of  our  institutions. 

"  *  We  labor,'  says  he,  '  under  a  great  mistake  about  the  Bible  in 
relation  to  education.  What  an  idea,  that  the  Bible  should  only 
be  read  at  stated  times  and  in  a  very  grave  and  staid  manner,  and 
to  draw  from  it  religious  instruction !  The  Bible,  as  a  reading- 
book,  is  the  most  interesting  book  in  the  world.  Literary  men 
give  it  this  credit.  It  is  the  most  perfect  literary  production  on 
earth.'  Regarding  the  Bible  thus,  and,  also,  because  '  it  affords,' 
as  he  said,  ;  the  only  perfect  rule  of  moral  conduct  and  religious 
instruction,'  he  favored  the  reading  of  it  in  the  common  schools. 
The  recognition  of  the  Bible,  and  the  infusion  of  its  principles  into 


-2±  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.  DRIGGS. 

the  common  mind,  he  regarded  as  essential  to  the  results  contem- 
plated by  our  whole  system  of  public  education. 

"From  the  training  and  position  of  Governor  Briggs,  his  opinions 
on  the  subject  of  education  deserve  great  weight.  Being  the  out- 
growth and  representative  of  free  institutions,  having  their  impress 
upon  him  in  every  lineament,  and  feeling  their  spirit  in  every  fibre, 
no  man  was  more  thoroughly  identified  with  the  people,  or  more 
honestly  and  intelligently  sought  their  good.  Without  the  advan- 
tage of  a  liberal  education,  he  rose  to  the  highest  offices  in  the  gift 
of  the  people  of  his  State,  and  filled  them  for  an  unusual  period 
with  great  acceptance  and  public  benefit.  No  man,  therefore, 
knew  better  than  he  the  necessities  of  the  people,  or  the  difficulties 
and  disadvantages  of  young  men  left  to  make  their  own  way  in  tht 
world.  And  not  onhr  had  he  gained  high  position  through  diffi- 
culties, but  also  high  culture,  and  thus  stood  on  an  eminence  from 
which  he  could  survey  the  whole  ground.  As  the  result,  we  have, 
as  has  been  seen,  his  position  and  views  on  the  three  great  points 
on  which  the  interests  of  our  educational  system  turn. 

"1.  Governor  Briggs  comprehended  most  fully,  and  sustained 
most  earnestly,  the  fundamental  principle  of  free  education,  and, 
it  may  be  added,  of  republican  freedom  —  that  the  children  of  the 
State  shall  be  so  far  educated  by  the  property  of  the  State  as  to  be 
qualified  for  the  duties  of  citizenship. 

"2.  He  favored  a  liberal  education,  both  for  its  intrinsic  excel- 
lence, as  giving  dignity  to  man,  and  for  its  indispensable  agency 
in  sustaining  and  elevating  the  tone  and  standard  of  the  common 
schools. 

"  3.  He  insisted  that  the  education  of  the  heart  should  be  attended 
to  in  connection  with  that  of  the  intellect ;  and  for  this  he  regarded 
the  Bible  as  the  main  instrument. 

"These  are  the  essential  principles  of  our  American  system  of 
education.  Upon  the  adoption  and  intelligent  application  of  these 
principles,  the  permanence  of  our  institutions  depends;  and  it 
was  not  among  the  least  benefits  conferred  upon  his  country  by 
the  great  and  good  man  whom  we  now  commemorate,  that  he 
expressed  them  so  strongly,  and  acted  upon  them  so  faithfully." 


edward  Everett's  inauguration.  225 

In  1846,  the  then  somewhat  rare  occasion  arose  for  the 
public  inauguration  of  a  new  President  of  Harvard  College. 
Edward  Everett  had  been  chosen  to  fill  the  vacancy  occa- 
sioned by  the  retirement  of  Mr.  Quincy. 

The  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  had  been  immemori- 
ally  Chairman  of  its  Board  of  Overseers,  and  it  was  his  prov- 
ince to  induct  a  newly-elected  President  into  his  office,  and 
to  invest  him  with  the  administrative  functions  of  the  col- 
lege. To  this  duty,  Governor  Briggs  addressed  himself 
with  that  happy  tact  which  made  all  occasions  alike  to  him, 
whatever  the  degree  of  their  importance,  occasions  of  suc- 
cessful performance  of  duty. 

His  address  to  Mr.  Everett  is  a  model  of  simplicity  and 
appropriate  brevity,  chaste  in  language,  felicitous  in  its  allu- 
sions, and  honorable  to  its  author  for  its  broad  and  just 
appreciation  of  that  learning — without  the  aid  of  which, 
but  not  without  deep  regret  at  his  disadvantage  in  not 
having  enjoyed  it  —  he  had  achieved  distinctions  and  honors 
which  any  graduate  of  Harvard  might  envy.  The  address 
is  quoted  in  full :  — 

Edward  Everett  : 

Sir,  — You  having  been  duly  elected  President  of  Harvard  College, 
in  compliance  with  ancient  custom,  and  in  the  name  of  the  Over- 
seers, I  do  now  invest  you  with  the  government  and  authority  of 
that  institution,  to  be  exercised  in  the  same  manner  and  to  the 
same  extent  as  has  been  heretofore  done  by  your  predecessors  in 
office.  I  deliver  to  you  these  keys,  with  these  books  and  papers, 
as  badges  of  your  authority,  confident  that  you  will  exercise  and 
administer  the  same  according  to  the  usages  of  the  institution, 
and  in  obedience  to  the  laws  and  constitution  of  the  Common- 
wealth. 
Allow  me,  sir,  to  congratulate  you  and  the  officers  and  friends 


22G  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

of  this  venerable  University  upon  the  auspicious  circumstances  in 
which  you  enter  into  office. 

Having  filled  the  most  important  civil  stations  in  your  own 
State,  and  under  the  Government  of  the  republic,  with  credit  to 
yourself  and  with  honor  to  your  country,  you  have  now  come  up 
to  this  literary  eminence,  at  the  bidding  of  its  authority,  to  take 
charge  of  the  parent  University  of  the  New  World. 

The  entire  unanimity  with  which  you  were  chosen  to  this 
responsible  trust,  bears  testimony  to  the  estimate  in  which  your 
qualifications  were  held  by  those  whose  duty  it  was  to  fill  the 
vacancy  occasioned  by  the  retirement  of  your  distinguished  pre- 
decessor. A  long  line  of  learned  and  good  men  have,  by  their 
example,  illuminated  the  path  in  which  you  are  to  walk.  It  does 
not  become  me  to  speak  of  the  duties  you  are  to  perform.  They 
are  before  you,  and  in  anticipation  you  know  them  by  heart. 

To  influence  the  young  men  of  this  country,  to  enlighten  their 
minds,  make  right  impressions  upon  their  yielding  hearts,  to  fash- 
ion their  manners,  mould  their  characters,  and  send  them  forth 
into  the  world  qualified  to  act  their  part  in  society,  and  fulfil  their 
destiny  on  earth,  is,  in  my  estimation,  the  highest  and  noblest 
object  to  which  genius  and  learning  and  patriotism  and  piety  can 
be  devoted. 

In  early  youth,  your  Alma  Mater  adorned  you  with  her  brightest 
honors,  and  bade  you  go  forth  into  the  world.  Like  a  dutiful  son, 
you  have  returned  to  render  her  the  services  of  ripened  manhood, 
and  to  aid  her  in  raising  up  and  sending  out  still  other  happy  and 
promising  sons. 

More  than  half  a  century  ago,  Edmund  Burke,  in  speaking  of  the 
English  and  French  nobility,  said,  "  The  latter  had  the  advantage 
of  the  former,  in  being  surrounded  by  the  powerful  outguard  of  a 
military  education."  History  has  shown  how  powerless  that  out- 
guard was  in  protecting  the  nobility  of  France,  and  France  herself, 
against  the  attacks  of  an  internal  foe.  It  will  be  your  higher  pur- 
pose, and  the  purpose  of  those  who  co-operate  with  you  in  this 
ancient  seat  of  learning,  to  protect  the  youth  committed  to  your 
care  by  planting  in  the  citadel  of  their  hearts  the  more  powerful 
internal  guard  of  a  Christian  Education. 


EDWARD   EVERETT'S  IXAUGURATIOX.  227 

While  pouring  upon  their  opening  minds  the  light  of  Literature 
and  Science,  there  will  be  presented  to  them  the  beauties  of  prac- 
tical Christianity,  and  strongly  inculcated  upon  their  moral  nature 
the  sublime  doctrines  and  holy  precepts  of  "Him  who  spake  as 
never  man  spake."  Here  let  young  men  learn  that  true  heroism 
consists  in  doing  good  ;  that  the  highest  attainment  of  personal 
honor  is  the  forgiveness  of  injuries,  and  that  God  has  made  great- 
ness and  goodness  inseparable. 

It  only  remains  for  me  to  express  the  great  satisfaction  which  I 
feel  in  being  made  the  organ  of  the  Board  of  Overseers  for  induct- 
ing you  into  office ;  and  I  am  sure,  sir,  that  I  may  say  for  the  peo- 
ple of  the  whole  Commonwealth,  you  have  their  confidence  in 
advance,  that  by  a  liberal  and  just  administration  of  the  affairs  of 
the  college,  you  will,  so  far  as  in  you  lies,  maintain  its  high  repu- 
tation, make  its  benefits  accessible  to  the  aspirants  after  knowl- 
edge among  all  classes  of  our  young  men,  and  strengthen  the 
public  attachment  for  this  institution  of  the  State,  which  was 
founded  by  the  liberality,  the  wisdom,  and  the  prayers  of  our  Puri- 
tan Fathers. 


CHAPTER    XIX. 


A  YEAR  IX  A  LETTER  — A  PRESENTIMENT  —  FIRST  OF  APRIL— EXTRA  OF- 
FICIAL LABORS  —  LETTER  TO  ZACHARY  TAYLOR  —  HOMELESS  —  HIS  NEW 
ABODE  — A  RURAL  LIFE— A  DAUGHTER'S  PORTRAITURE. 


'EW  special  memorials  of  Governor  Briggs  during 
the  year  1848,  are  found  in  his  correspondence,  and 
this  period  was  unmarked  by  anything  striking  in 
his  public  life. 

One  letter,  and  a  fragment  of  another,  must  suf- 
fice to  represent  the  year  in  these  pages. 

The  date  of  the  letter  is  suggestive  of  tricks,  and  tricks 
were  evidently  in  the  mind  of  the  writer  when  he  penned 
it.  He  glides,  however  unconsciously,  from  gay  to  grave  ; 
though  not  —  to  complete  the  thought — "from  lively  to 
severe."  It  is  only  a,  transcript  of  a  gentle,  generous,  and 
graceful  heart.  How  strange,  in  the  light  of  the  truth, 
seems  the  presentiment  expressed  in  this  letter,  that  his 
wife  "  would  be  clad  in  the  garments  of  widowhood."  She 
sits  to-day  in  thoje  garments,  pondering  "  the  ways  of  God 
to  man,"  and  thanking  Him  for  precious  memories  of  her 
sainted  husband :  — 

Boston,  April  1.  184S. 
My  dear  Daughter: 

It  is  thirty-one  years  to-day  since  I  put  into  the  post-office  in 
Lanesboro'  the  well-remembered  April-fool  letter  to  your  mother, 
which  she  received,  believing  it  to  be  from  a  distant  lover.  It 
seems  but  a  day  since  this  boyish  freak  was  performed  with  such 
amusement  to  the  author,  and  such  momentary  chagrin  to  the 

228 


Fill  ST  OF  APRIL   LETTER.  229 

young  girl  who  received  it.  But  now  I  am  writing  to  the  daughter 
of  that  April-fooled  girl,  who  is  six  or  seven  years  older  than  her 
mother  was  at  that  time.  Neither  the  foolemor  the  fooled  knew 
at  that  time  that  their  destinies  were  to  be  one  in  this  world, 
though  I  presume  in  both  their  hearts  the  seeds  of  an  affection 
were  planted  which  soon  began  to  spring  up,  and  which  I  hope 
will  bloom  and  last  forever.  Happy  union  has  that  been  to  me. 
As  the  scenes  of  youth  and  the  friends  of  other  years  pass  more 
and  more  away,  the  tender  and  delicate  ties  that  then  bound  our 
young  hearts  together,  are  growing  now  into  bands  of  iron,  which 
time  with  its  vicissitudes  makes  stronger  and  stronger.  Your 
mother  was  dear  to  me  when  a  thoughtless  boy,  and  when  all 
around  me  was  bright  and  gay ;  but  now  when  the  frosts  of  age 
begin  to  chill  the  outer  world  and  whiten  the  locks  which  were 
then  glossy  with  youth,  she  is  a  thousand  times  more  so.  Having 
lived  so  long  and  to  so  little  good  effect,  and  feeling  the  painful 
consciousness  that  I  am  of  so  little  consequence  to  any  in  the 
world  except  her,  she  seems  to  me  the  only  object  that  strongly 
binds  me  to  the  earth.  She  gave  me  her  heart  and  hand  when  a 
penniless  stranger ;  never  since  that  day  has  that  heart  beat,  save 
for  me  and  her  family.  Though  I  have  always  been  strong,  and  she 
feeble,  I  have  long  been  impressed  with  the  idea  that  the  day 
would  come  when  she  would  be  clad  in  the  garments  of  widow- 
hood. Of  that,  however,  it  becomes  not  me  to  speak.  It  will 
be,  as  it  seems,  good  to  Him  who  orders  all  things  well.  This  you 
will  think  a  singular  letter  for  all-fools  day,  but  after  I  sat  down  to 
write,  my  thoughts  led  off  in  this  direction,  and  I  have  followed 
them. 

Love  to  Charles. 

Affectionately  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

His  extra-official  labors  were  continually  numerous,  and 
as  continually  of  a  philanthropic  or  religious  nature.  Wit- 
ness this  record  —  an  extract  from  a  letter  to  his  wife  :  — 

"  Yesterday,  I  kept  fast  by  going  out  in  the  morning  to  Somer- 
ville,  and  in  the  afternoon  to  Charlestown,  and  making  speeches 

20 


230  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BR1GGS. 

at  two  Sabbath-school  celebrations.  I  thought  it  would  be  a 
pleasant  way  to  keep  the  day.  Wednesday  evening  I  went  to 
West  Newton,  and  made  a  temperance  speech.  So  you  see  thus 
far  this  week  I  have  made  four  speeches,  such  as  they  were. 
They  were  the  best  I  could  make  any  how.  I  have  one  consola- 
tion ;  I  made  them  with  the  hope  of  doing  good.  Whether  they 
will  or  not,  depends  upon  Him,  without  whose  blessing  all  the 
efforts  of  men  are  vain.  Be  of  good  cheer.  I  hope  before  long  to 
be  with  you.  Love  to  Henry,  grandma,  to  the  girls  and  to  John, 
and  all  the  neighbors  who  think  it  worth  receiving. 

Ever  thine, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

A  year  later  he  addressed  the  following  communication 
to  Zachary  Tajdor,  then  just  inaugurated  President  of  the 
United  States :  — 

"  It  is,"  says  one  who  knew  the  writer  intimately,  "  such  an  ex- 
pression of  the  true  patriotism  of  his  character,  and  of  the  prin- 
ciples on  which  it  is  based,  that  at  this  hour  it  has  great  force ; 
and  shows  how  firmly  and  steadily,  in  this  exigency  of  our 
countn-,  he  would  maintain  his  confidence  in  public  men  of  honest 
intentions  and  fair  ability,  as  believing  them  adequate  to  achieve 
success  in  the  management  of  public  affairs.  Another  trait  ap- 
pears worthy  of  mark ;  the  cordiality  with  which  he  sustained  for 
office  a  candidate  who  was-  not  his  choice,  because  fairly  presented 
for  the  suffrages  of  the  people  by  their  representatives  ^conven- 
tion. He  gave  his  support  to  General  Tajdor,  because  he  believed 
him  to  be  an  honest  man,  just  as  in  another  instance  he  withheld 
it  from  a  man  he  believed  to  be  dishonest,  because,  he  declared,  he 
never  had,  and  he  never  would,  give  his  vote  for  a  man  he  believed 
to  be  untrue." 

Boston,  20th  March,  1849. 
Dear  Sir  : 

As  the  public  now  claim  you,  I  trust  that  a  communication  from 
an  entire  stranger  will  be  excused. 
Perhaps  in  frankness,  I  ought  to  say,  that  until  your  name  was 


LETTER    TO   ZACHARY  TAYLOR.  231 

presented  as  a  candidate  for  the  Presidency  by  the  Whig  conven- 
tion at  Philadelphia,  there  was  no  man  in  Massachusetts,  more  op- 
posed to  your  nomination  than  I  was.  Prom  the  time  of  that 
nomination,  which  I  believed  to  be  fair,  no  one  felt  a  deeper  inter- 
est in  your  success.  I  believed  the  great  interests  of  the  country 
demanded  it.  Your  letters,  especially  the  Allison  letter,1  laid 
down  principles  of  action  for  a  Chief  Magistrate,  which,  if  fol- 
lowed out,  wouid  restore  this  glorious,  free  constitutional  govern- 
ment of  ours  to  its  original  intent  and  purity,  leaving  its  various 
departments  to  their  own  appropriate  and  legitimate  action.  You 
said  you  were  a  Whig,  and,  if  elected,  you  would  be  the  President 
of  the  people,  and  not  of  a  party.  The  people  believed  you  honest, 
and  have  taken  you  at  your  word.  They  knew  you  were  without 
experience  in  the  practical  affairs  of  the  Government,  but  that 
great  word  honest  had  a  charm  for  the  masses  which  politicians 
knew  not  of.  They  have  invested  you  with  power  in  the  full  con- 
fidence that  that  power  would  be  wisely  and  constitutionally  used. 
Thus  far  your  words  and  deeds  in  power  have  justified  the  confi- 
dence inspired  by  your  words  and  conduct  before  you  were  placed 
in  authority. 

Allow  me  to  say,  sir,  that  nothing  you  have  said  or  done  has 
given  so  much  pleasure  to  the  great  body  of  the  people  of  the 
United  States,  and  inspired  them  with  such  confident  hopes  of  the 
success  of  your  administration,  as  the  declaration  from  your  lips 
and  your  pen,  that  you  would  make  honesty,  ability,  and  fidelity, 
and  a  good  private  character,  indispensable  qualifications  for  office. 
I  do  not  use  your  precise  words,  but  I  am  sure  I  have  not  mis- 
taken your  sentiment,  —  a  sentiment  which,  announced  by  the 
Chief  Magistrate  of  the  Union,  made  the  heart  of  this  whole  peo- 
ple glad.  When  you  said  it,  they  believed  you  meant  what  you 
said.  I  know,  the  rule  will  exclude  many  open-mouthed  patriots 
from  office,  but  I  hope  you  will  stand  to  it  if  the  heavens  fall. 

Edmund  Burke  once  said  that  "  honest,  good  intention,  which 
is  as  sure  of  being  seen  at  first,  as  fraud  is  of  being  detected  at 
last,  is  of  no  mean  force  in  the  government  of  mankind."    The 

l  Letter  to  Capt.  J.  S.  Allison,  of  April  22,  1848. 


232  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

remark  is  as  philosophical  as  it  is  beautiful.  Honesty,  in  too  many 
of  the  affairs  of  this  country,  has  been  more  rare  than  ability. 
The  last  without  the  first  is  full  of  dangers.  The  first,  with  a  re- 
spectable share  of  the  last,  will  serve  the  public  with  success.  I 
trust  that  licentiousness,  intemperance,  and  dishonesty  will  not  be 
permitted  hereafter  to  revel  in  the  public  offices  of  this  nation. 

No  President,  since  "Washington,  has  had  more  of  the  nation's 
confidence  in  advance,  than  you  enjoy.  The  people  all  wish  you 
success.     I  have  no  fear  that  their  confidence  will  be  disappointed. 

May  your  administration  deserve  the  title  of  vrise  and  good. 
Such  a  title  will  be  a  glory  when  the  names  of  your  remarkable 
battles  will  be  forgotten.  May  the  good  Providence  that  has 
shielded  you  in  the  midst  of  ten  thousand  dangers,  now  aid,  pro- 
tect, and  bless  you. 

With  my  best  wishes  for  your  health  and  happiness  and  that  of 

your  family,  I  am 

Respectfully  and  truly  yours, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

To  Z.  Taylor,  President  of  the  United  States. 

The  next  letter  presents  him  to  us  again  in  Berkshire, 
but  as  he,  with  a  somewhat  facetious  sadness,  expresses 
it,  without  a  home.  It  was  addressed  to  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Bigelow  :  — 


o 


Pittsfield,  7th  May,  1849. 
Dear  Children  : 

On  reaching  the  station  in  this  place  on  Thursday,  and  deliver- 
ing over  six  pieces  of  baggage  to  Burlingham,  he,  as  in  duty 
bound,  asked  me  if  he  should  deliver  it  at  the  Berkshire.  I  said, 
"Xo,  at  my  house."  Whereupon  he  said,  "Your  folks  have 
moved,  and  Mrs.  B.  is  at  the  Berkshire."  This  was  indeed  re- 
freshing to  a  weary  pilgrim,  who  had  been  pining  for  home  for 
many  a  long  week.  But  the  fact  was  apparent  that  I  had  no  home, 
so  I  trudged  down  to  the  Berkshire,  and  found  my  way  to  Xo.  13, 
and  met  a  woman  I  had  been  in  the  habit  of  seeing  in  other  places. 
The  disappointment  in  not  finding  a  home  was  more  than  compen- 


HIS  NEW  ABODE.  233 

sated  in  seeing  the  woman  aforesaid  in  very  good  health,  albeit 
a  little  tired — having  in  the  morning  walked  before  breakfast  up  to 
the  house  that  is  to  be,  and  then  walked  back  again  after  break- 
fast. I  wonder  I  did  not  find  her  down  with  nervous  headache. 
The  girls  and   John  are  at  the   little  long  house  on  the  place ; 

Grandma  at  B 's ;   your  mother  and  I  at  the  Berkshire,  and 

A.  in  parts  unknown.  The  family  seem  to  be  dispersed.  Matters 
and  things,  under  the  administration  of  Burbank  and  Stoddard, 
with  six  or  eight  masons  and  carpenters  and  joiners,  are  progress- 
ing rapidly ;  so  that  I  hope  before  long  we  shall  begin  to  re-assem- 
ble around  a  common  hearth. 

To-day  I  harnessed  Billy  into  the  horse-cart.  It  was  so  heavy 
and  stiff  and  clumsy,  and  the  fixtures  were  so  different  from  those 
he  had  been  wont  to  be  surrounded  with,  that  for  some  little  time 
he  hardly  knew  what  to  make  of  it.  But  I  spoke  to  him  kindly  on 
the  subject,  and  explained  matters  to  him,  so  that  he  at  once 
became  reconciled,  and  made  the  inmost  respectable  appearance  of 
any  horse  and  cart  that  ever  passed  through  the  streets  of  our 
renowned  village,  to  say  nothing  of  his  driver.  It  is  time  to  close 
this  important  epistle,     /and  your  mother  send  love  to  all. 

Affectionately  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

With  his  entrance  into  his  new  abode,  he  began  what  was 
to  him  really  a  new  and  fascinating  life.  A  picture  of 
that  life,  from  the  hand  of  his  daughter,  leaves  the  biogra- 
pher nothing  to  do,  and  the  reader  nothing  to  desire,  in  its 
delineation :  — 

"During  the  month  of  May,  1849,  the  family  re-assembled  in 
their  new  home,  and  my  father  began  the  agricultural  life  so  pleas- 
ing to  his  tastes,  and  so  refreshing  in  the  intervals  of  repose  from 
his  public  services.  His  Berkshire  farm,  consisting  of  a  few  acres 
of  land,  is  a  few  minutes'  walk  west  of  the  village  of  Pittsfield,  on 
the  sunny  side  of  one  of  its  hills.  He  soon  placed  it  under  the  best 
cultivation,  and  it  really  became  to  him  an  object  of  thoughtful 
attention.  Applying  his  practical  good  sense  to  the  details  of 
20* 


2')±  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

agriculture,  he  proved  himself  a  skilful,  successful  farmer.  With- 
out any  attempt  at  elaborate  embellishment,  or  the  least  showi- 
ness,  everything  was  arranged  in  keeping  with  his  moderate  means 
and  simple  tastes.  Nowhere  was  the  grass  more  abundant  or 
sweeter  than  in  his  meadows  or  in  the  rock  pasture,  —  sweetened 
by  the  sunshine  and  its  own  dews  and  springs,  —  where  the  milch 
cows  throve,  cows  whose  descent  he  traced  with  peculiar  satis- 
faction back  to  the  fawn-faced  heifer,  sent  to  him  in  1810  from  a 
farm  in  South  Adams  by  Thorn  Farnham,  a  man  of  great  natural 
talent,  of  remarkable  common  sense,  and  'of  infinite  humor.' 

"  My  father  was  one  for  whom  '  the  apple-tree  has  sentiment.' 
The  fragrance  and  beauty  and  promise  of  spring,  and  the  wealth 
of  autumn,  made  the  orchard  a  joy  to  him.  The  pear-tree  at  the 
corner  of  the  house,  a  standard  of  the  old  stock,  he  regarded  as  a 
venerable  almoner  of  most  luscious  bounties.  Some  of  his  friends 
will  remember  how,  when  the  fruit  was  gathered  from  year  to 
year,  and  almost  always  with  Jus  own  hand,  he  was  wont  to  appear 
at  their  doors  with  basket  on  his  arm,  to  share  with  them  these 
autumn  riches,  expecting  them  to  admire  with  him  the  russet  pears 
set  off  by  the  ruddy  crab-apples  that  gleamed  around  them. 

"  The  patches  of  wheat,  or  oats,  or  corn,  or  potatoes,  were 
watched  with  unceasing  care,  which  Avas  sometimes  greatly  exer- 
cised by  summer  tempests,  or  parching  drought,  premature  frosts, 
and  depredating  enemies.  One  summer  a  beautiful  field  of  oats 
had  been  his  peculiar  solicitude  and  satisfaction  among  the  crops. 
He  was  absent,  attending  Commencement  at  Williams  College, 
when  these  were  harvested.  The  day  had  been  showery.  Seated 
among  the  trustees  on  the  stage  in  the  church,  the  second  day  of 
Commencement,  he  very  much  amused  one  of  his  sons  by  beckon- 
ing to  him  during  a  pause  in  the  exercises,  and  briefly  asking  him, 
'  Did  the  oats  get  wet? '  The  reply  satisfied  him,  no  doubt :  '  Xo, 
sir ;  they  were  all  in  before  I  left.' 

"  He  entered  the  hay-field  with  the  zest  of  a  boy,  which  was  by 
no  means  abated  in  the  burden  and  heat  of  the  day.  He  made  a 
point  of  always  carrying  into  the  field  the  well-filled  luncheon- 
basket,  arranging,  dispensing,  and  sharing  the  contents  with  the 
social  pleasure  that  the  appetizing  occupation  of  haying  inspires. 


THE  NEW  ". 

PUBLIC  LI)       RY, 


ASTOR,   LEN3X  AND 
TILDEN    FOUNDATIONS,      ! 


A   DAUGHTER'S  PORTRAITURE.  237 

Under  the  shadows  of  the  trees,  amid  the  incense  of  the  new-mown 
grass,  these  moments  of  rest  were  refreshing,  not  more  to  his 
body  than  to  his  soul,  so  sensitive  to  all  sweet  influences.  He  had 
true  sympathy  with  the  laborer  whose  toil  he  lightened  by  sharing 
it,  but  more  really  by  his  pleasant  words  and  a  sight  of  his  genial 
face.  Among  the  incidents  of  the  hay-field,  he  enjoyed  the  horse 
Billy's  demonstrations  of  spirit  and  strength  when  taking  in  the 
loads. 

"  During  one  of  the  summer  days  of  1860,  while  in  the  field,  he 
had  a  partial  sunstroke,  and  came  near  dying.  Afterwards,  he 
exposed  himself  to  the  heat  with  a  good  deal  of  caution,  though 
during  the  last  season  he  mowed. 

"He  seemed  to  us  the  happiest  man  in  the  world  when  busy 
with  the  occupations  of  the  farm,  no  matter  how  complicated  or 
oppressive  were  his  public  affairs.  He  made  us  think  of '  content- 
ment with  godliness ; '  though,  after  the  clouds  rested  so  darkly 
on  his  country,  few  saw  him  who  did  not  mark  the  changed  tone 
of  the  man;  and  we,  who  loved  him  most,  knew  why  the  form  was 
bowed  as  with  the  weight  of  a  great  burden,  and  why  he  was  so 
weary  and  silent,  and  his  heart  so  troubled. 

"  The  birds  he  was  always  first  to  discover  and  welcome  with 
the  early  spring.  '  Our  robin '  Mas  his  favorite.  He  never  tired 
of  his  plaintive  musical  note.  A  pair  of  robins  came  year  after 
year  and  built  their  nest  undisturbed  in  the  piazza.  There  seemed 
to  be  an  understanding  between  him  and  the  birds. 

"  The  doves  used  to  fly  from  their  cotes  and  alight  on  his  head 
and  shoulders,  and  the  chickens  to  fly  upon  his  arms  and  follow 
him  all  about,  when  he  went  into  their  yard.  This  they  did  to  no 
others  who  fed  them.  He  never  moved  or  spoke  roughly  when 
dealing  with  his  animals.  He  seemed  on  confidential  terms  with 
them,  and  had  great  control  over  them.  He  could  call  the  cows 
from  the  most  distant  part  of  the  pasture,  and  Billy,  his  pet  horse 
for  nearly  twenty  years  (that  drew  the  hearse  when  the  dear  form 
was  borne  to  the  grave),  at  a  signal  from  his  master  would  lay  his 
head  caressingly  on  his  shoulder,  with  such  intelligence  and  kind- 
ness that  both  parties  were  always  highly  gratified." 


CHAPTER    XX. 

THE  WEBSTER  MURDER  CASE  —  THE  RELATION  OF  GOVERNOR  BRIGGS  TO  IT 
—  HIS  DIFFICULT  POSITION  —  HIS  FIRMNESS — HISTORY  OF  THE  CASE  BY 
ATTORNEY-GENERAL  CLIFFORD. 

;0 WARDS  the  close  of  the  year  1849 — the  last  year 
but  one  of  the  official  life  of  Governor  Brigo-s  — 

Do 

there  transpired  an  event,  memorable  in  the  annals 
of  crime,  followed  by  a  trial  and  a  vindication  of 
the  majesty  of  law,  which  deserve,  and  will  find,  a 

place  in  all  subsequent  records  of  the  most  remarkable 

criminal  causes  in  history. 
This  crime  was  a  murder,  — 

"  Murder  most  foul,  as  in  the  best  it  is, 
But  this  most  foul,  strange  and  unnatural." 

It  was  the  murder  of  a  well-known  professional  man  in 
Boston,  Dr.  George  Parkman,  by  one  of  the  Faculty 
of  Harvard  University — John  W.  Webster,  the  Professor 
of  Chemistry.  The  character  and  connections  of  the  mur- 
derer and  of  his  victim  ;  the  atrocious  circumstances  of  the 
crime  ;  the  extraordinary  developments  in  the  process  of  its 
discovery  and  accusation  of  the  supposed  criminal,  excited 
the  public  mind  from  one  end  of  the  country  to  another, 
to  an  almost  unparalleled  degree. 

The  trial  of  this  extraordinary  case  served,  naturally,  to 
intensify  this  excitement.  The  fame  of  it  spread  beyond 
the  sea,  and  the  Crown  Advocate  of  England  is  reported 

238 


THE    WEBSTER  MURDER    CASE.  239 

to  have  said  of  it  that  "  the  decision  of  the  case  would  ad- 
vance or  retard  the  cause  of  justice  throughout  Europe  for 
a  century." 

The  relation  of  Governor  Briggs  to  this  memorable  cause 
began  when  the  law  had  completed  its  stern  processes, 
fastening  upon  the  wretched  prisoner  indisputable  proofs 
of  his  guilt,  and  when  justice,  taking  these  evidences  in  her 
hand,  pronounced  upon  him  the  sentence  of  condemnation 
to  death. 

Now  began  for  such  a  man  as  he,  whose  life  is  here  writ- 
ten, a  consciousness  of  dread  but  unavoidable  responsi- 
bility, and  a  conflict  between  his  tender  nature  and  his  un- 
wavering, unobscured  sense  of  duty,  of  which  no  language 
can  convey  any  adequate  impression. 

The  sentence  of  death,  so  terrible  in  the  case  of  the 
humblest  and  most  obscure  criminal,  was  in  the  case  of  a 
distinguished  professional  man,  connected  with  the  oldest 
college  in  the  land,  invested  to  the  public  apprehension 
with  peculiar,  and,  as  some  insisted,  with  insufferable  hor- 
ror. It  must  be  set  aside  by  pardon  or  commutation,  if 
such  a  result  should  require  incredible  exertions  and  in- 
numerable measures  for  its  accomplishment. 

As  a  part  of  the  vast  endeavor  made  to  mollify  the  stern 
verdict  of  justice  in  this  case,  the  Governor  was  subjected 
to  solicitations,  entreaties,  pleas,  threatenings,  and  —  most 
unlikely  of  all  arguments  with  such  a  man  —  to  offered 
bribes,  if  haply  he  might  be  prevailed  upon  to  commute 
the  sentence  pronounced  against  the  criminal. 

To  contemplate  him  standing  unmoved  before  this  storm 
of  pride  and  passion  and  pity,  —  all  working  in  strange 
and  eager  combination,  to  stir  him  from  his  official  integ- 
rity, is  to  be  filled  with  the  profoundest  admiration  of  that 


240  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

greatness  of  soul,  which  alone  kept  him  from  the  weakness 
of  misguided  mercy  at  that  solemn  hour.  He  stood  firm. 
The  nation  held  its  breath  with  a  deep  applause,  suppressed 
only  by  the  awful  tragedy  and  terror,  yet  to  be  consummated 
in  the  public  execution  of  the  criminal.  The  public  voice 
of  this  great  continent,  and  echoes  of  it  from  the  shores  of 
the  Old  World,  at  length  declared  the  sublimity  of  his  more 
than  Roman  —  his  Christian  —  firmness  in  withholding  his 
hand  from  altering,  by  one  whit,  the  sentence  of  the  Court 
against  the  murderer. 

The  cause  itself  will  pass  into  history,  and  a  life  of  Gov- 
ernor Briggs  would  be  strangely  incomplete  without  more 
than  this  brief  notice  of  it.  Gladly,  therefore,  does  the 
biographer  give  place  here  to  a  chronicle  of  the  circum- 
stances connecting  Governor  Briggs  with  the  case,  and  his 
decision  on  the  appeal  for  the  executive  clemency,  pre- 
pared by  request  by  Mr.  Clifford,  who  was  then  Attorney- 
General  of  the  Commonwealth,  and  conducted  the  case  on 
its  trial,  with  an  ability  which  won  universal  acknowledg- 
ment. To  his  paper,  the  rest  of  this  chapter  is  devoted, 
and  its  interest  will  doubtless  leave  the  reader  in  no  regret 
at  the  length  of  it :  — 

"  Among  the  perplexing  and  responsible  duties  imposed  on  a 
Governor  of  Massachusetts  by  the  obligations  of  his  office,  there 
is  no  one,  the  performance  of  which  is  more  decisive  of  the  quality 
of  the  man  and  the  character  of  the  Magistrate  than  his  exercise 
of  the  pardoning  power,  which  by  the  Constitution  of  the  Com- 
monwealth is  confided  to  the  Executive. 

"The  firmness  that  cannot  only  resist  the  agonizing  entreaties 
of  friends,  the  ingenious  pleadings  of  counsel,  and  the  popular 
appeals,  that  are  so  easily  evoked  on  behalf  of  the  convicted  crimi- 
nal, but  can  also  repress  the  natural  desires  which  most  men  feel 
to  exercise   the  prerogative  of  mercy,  even  at  the   expense  of 


ATTORNEY-GENERAL    CLIFFORD'S  HISTORY.  241 

justice,  is  a  quality  that  finds  its  support  in  a  conscientious  fidelity 
to  duty  alone.  In  Governor  Briggs  this  characteristic  was  emi- 
nently conspicuous,  for  it  was  exhibited  under  the  strong  contrast 
of  a  singularly  gracious  and  sympathetic  nature.  During  his  long 
and  honorable  service  in  the  chair  of  State,  it  was  often  put  to  a 
severe  and  trying  test,  but  in  no  instance  was  he  betrayed  into  a 
conscious  departure  from  the  obligation  imposed  upon  him  by  his 
official  oath. 

"  Grateful  as  it  might  be  to  his  feelings  to  yield  to  the  solicita- 
tions of  those  who  besought  him  to  interpose  between  the  claims 
of  justice  and  the  appeals  to  executive  clemency,  he  never  forgot 
the  great  truth,  that  a  mistaken  lenity  to  the  individual  inevitably 
tends  to  weaken  the  authority  of  the  law,  and  is  in  itself  a  dan- 
gerous provocative  to  crime. 

"  One  of  the  most  attractive  incidents  in  the  history  of  a  mon- 
arch, whose  equitable  reign  over  the  people  of  France  had  earned 
for  him  a  better  fate  than  to  be  driven  forth  from  her  soil  as  a  fugi- 
tive and  an  exile,  is  narrated  of  Louis  Philippe  by  his  principal 
Minister,  Guizot,  the  accomplished  author  of  the  '  History  of  Civil- 
ization.' Calling  at  the  palace  at  a  late  hour  of  the  night  with  an 
important  dispatch  upon  urgent  public  business,  to  receive  which 
he  supposed  the  king  would  have  to  be  roused  from  his  bed,  he 
found  him,  to  his  surprise,  hard  at  work  in  his  cabinet  adjoining 
his  bed-chamber,  with  a  large  manuscript  volume  before  him. 
His  curiosity  prompted  him  to  ask  his  Majesty  what  was  the  nature 
of  his  unusual  toil ;  when  he  found  that  the  volume  on  which  the 
king  was  engaged  contained  a  resume  of  the  cases  in  which  he 
was  required  to  exercise  the  royal  prerogative  of  determining  the 
question  of  capital  punishment.  He  learned  that  in  every  case  of 
a  capital  conviction,  when  the  papers  were  laid  before  his  Majesty 
by  the  Minister  of  Justice,  for  his  signature  to  the  warrant  of  exe- 
cution, it  was  the  practice  of  Louis  Philippe  to  make  an  analysis 
of  the  case,  presenting  all  the  considerations  for  and  against  the 
remission  of  the  dread  penalty,  before  affixing  the  royal  authority 
to  a  warrant  for  the  execution  of  the  humblest  citizen  of  France, 
and  that  the  hours  for  this  self-imposed  and  self-denying  labor 

were  wrested  from  the  ordinary  periods  of  repose  and  sleep. 
21 


242  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

"  Iso  higher  testimonial  of  fidelity  to  his  great  trust  than  this, 
can  be  found  in  the  history  of  a  crowned  king  of  any  country  or 
age.  But  it  finds  its  parallel  in  the  conscientious  diligence  with 
which  our  republican  ruler,  Governor  Briggs,  examined  all  similar 
cases  while  the  same  prerogative  was  confided  to  him.  He  spared 
no  labor  in  the  investigation  of  every  case  in  which  an  appeal  was 
made  to  the  executive  clemency;  and,  having  fully  satisfied  his 
own  conscience  what  his  duty  as  a  magistrate  required,  he  was 
inflexible  in  repelling  every  lower  motive  as  a  controlling  influence 
over  his  official  action. 

"  The  most  signal  instance  of  this  is  to  be  found  in  the  celebrated 
case  of  Dr.  Webster,  which  occurred  during  his  administration. 
The  reputation  of  the  prisoner,  the  character  and  standing  of  the 
deceased,  the  circumstances  of  the  homicide,  the  manner  in  which 
its  perpetration  was  for  a  time  successfully  concealed  by  the  bar- 
barous murderer's  revolting  mutilation  and  almost  entire  destruc- 
tion of  the  body  of  his  victim,  and  the  wonderful  chain  of  circum- 
stantial proof  which  led  to  his  detection  and  conviction, — all 
combined  to  invest  the  case  with  a  degree  of  interest,  both  at 
home  and  abroad,  that  has  never  been  equalled  by  any  criminal 
trial  in  this  country. 

"  Dr.  John  W.  "Webster  was  the  son  of  a  highly  respectable  drug- 
gist in  Boston,  was  educated  at  Harvard  College,  and  graduated  in 
the  Class  of  1811,  one  of  the  most  distinguished,  by  the  subsequent 
career  of  its  members,  to  be  found  upon  the  rolls  of  that  ancient 
University.  A  portion  of  his  preparatory  term  of  stud}'  for  enter- 
ing upon  his  profession,  was  spent  in  the  medical  schools  of 
London ;  and  on  his  return  to  his  native  city  he  was  appointed  the 
Professor  of  Chemistry  in  the  medical  department  of  the  Univer- 
sity. He  married  a  lady  of  rare  excellence  and  worth,  who  was 
connected  with  some  of  the  most  cultivated  and  respected  families 
of  Boston ;  and  at  the  time  of  his  arrest  and  trial,  Avas  the  father 
of  three  interesting  and  accomplished  daughters.  Such  a  man,  sur- 
rounded and  shielded  by  the  highest  social  and  moral  influences, 
would  seem  to  have  pledged  such  hostages  to  fortune  as  to  have 
placed  him  far  above  the  temptation  to  crime. 

"  His  victim  was  Dr.  George  Parkman,  the  head  of  one  of  the 


ATTORXEY-GEKERAL   CLIFFORD'S  HISTORY.  243 

leading  families  of  the  same  city,  a  graduate  of  the  same  univer- 
sity, and  a  distinguished  member  of  the  same  profession,  who  had 
devoted  a  portion  of  his  large  possessions  to  the  munificent  en- 
dowment of  the  institution  in  which  Dr.  Webster  held  his  profess- 
orship, and  to  the  erection  of  the  very  building  in  which  he  met  a 
violent  death  at  Professor  Webster's  hands. 

"A  case  involving  such  elements  as  these  could  not  fail  to  excite 
an  extraordinary  interest  throughout  the  country.  From  the  time 
of  the  prisoner's  arrest,  in  November,  1849,  to  the  day  of  his  execu- 
tion, August  30,  1850,  it  was  the  topic  of  unceasing  comment  by 
the  press,  and  of  much  ignorant  and  misinformed  criticism  of  all 
who  were  in  any  way  connected  with  the  trial.  During  all  this 
period  Governor  Briggs  was  constantly  receiving  communications 
of  every  conceivable  variety  of  tone  and  character,  and,  with  very 
few  exceptions,  all  of  them  addressed  to  his  compassion  and  his 
sympathies,  in  behalf  of  the  prisoner  and  his  heart-broken  family. 
After  the  trial  and  sentence,  a  petition  of  the  convict  for  a  pardon 
was  presented  to  the  Governor  and  Council.  This  petition,  every 
word  of  which  was  in  the  handwriting  of  Dr.  Webster  himself, 
carefully  prepared  by  him  while  under  the  awful  sentence  of  death, 
was,  in  view  of  his  subsequent  confession,  that  its  essential  state- 
ments were  deliberate  falsehoods,  a  most  extraordinary  document. 
Its  character  may  be  inferred  from  the  following  extracts  :  — 

"  *  Having  been  convicted,'  he  says,  '  before  the  Supreme  Judicial 
Court,  of  the  murder  of  Dr.  George  Parkman,  I  would  most  re- 
spectfully petition  your  Excellency  and  the  Honorable  Council,  to 
be  permitted  to  declare,  in  the  most  solemn  manner,  that  I  am  en- 
tirely innocent  of  this  awful  crime ;  that  I  never  entertained  any 
other  than  the  kindest  feelings  towards  him ;  and  that  I  never  had 
any  inducement  to  injure,  in  any  way,  him  whom  I  have  long 
numbered  among  my  best  friends. 

"  '  To  Him  who  seeth  in  secret,  and  before  whom  I  may  ere  long 
be  called  to  appear,  would  I  appeal  for  the  truth  of  what  I  now 
declare,  as  also  for  the  truth  of  the  solemn  declaration,  that  I  had 
no  agency  in  placing  the  remains  of  a  human  body  in  or  under 
my  rooms  in  the  Medical  College  in  Boston,  nor  do  I  know  by 
whom  they  were  so  placed.    I  am  the  victim  of  circumstances,  or 


244  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

of  a  foul  conspiracy,  or  of  the  attempt  of  some  individual  to 
cause  suspicion  to  fall  upon  me,  influenced  perhaps  by  the  pros- 
pect of  obtaining  a  large  reward 

"  '  Repeating  in  the  most  positive  and  solemn  manner,  and  under 
the  fullest  sense  of  my  responsibility,  as  a  man  and  as  a  Christian, 
that  I  am  wholly  innocent  of  this  charge,  to  the  truth  of  which 
the  Searcher  of  all  hearts  is  a  witness,  I  would  humbly  and  re- 
spectfully pray  that  the  privilege  I  have  asked  may  be  granted.' 

"  The  effect  of  such  solemn  asseverations  and  imprecations  as 
these  upon  the  mind  of  such  a  man  as  Governor  Briggs,  to  whom 
the  '  Searcher  of  all  hearts '  was  a  constant  presence,  and  not  a 
mere  conventional  phrase,  or  a  figure  of  rhetoric;  could  not  be 
otherwise  than  decisive  of  an  entire  want  of  trust  in  any  subsequent 
statements  which  conflicted  with  them,  however  strongly  pressed 
upon  them  by  the  prisoner's  protestations  of  penitence  and  remorse. 

"  On  the  other  hand,  he  was  not  moved  by  them  to  any  relaxation 
of  diligence  in  his  investigation  of  the  grounds  upon  which  the 
appeal  to  his  clemency  was  finally  placed  by  the  spiritual  adviser 
of  the  convict, — the  Rev.  Dr.  Putnam, — by  whom  this  petition  was 
withdrawn,  when  he  subsequently  presented  to  the  Governor  the 
confessional  statement  of  Dr.  Webster,  in  which  the  homicide  was 
admitted.  He  attended  the  meeting  of  the  Committee  of  the 
Council  before  whom  the  hearings  upon  the  petition  were  had ;  he 
received  deputations  from  religious  societies  and  anti-capital 
punishment  associations  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  and  patient- 
ly heard  their  arguments  and  appeals  for  a  commutation  of  the 
sentence;  and  what  was  more  painful  to  his  kindly  nature  than 
everything  else,  he  listened,  with  an  earnest  sympathy,  to  the 
pleadings  for  mercy  that  were  pressed  upon  him  by  the  immediate 
family  and  personal  friends  of  the  prisoner. 

"But  he  knew,  that  to  justify  his  official  interposition  in  a  case 
like  this,  something  beside  all  these  influences  must  be  brought  to 
bear  upon  a  magistrate  who  had  solemnly  pledged  himself  to  see 
that  the  '  laws  were  faithfully  executed.'  He  knew  that  no  person 
charged  with  crime  in  any  Christian  commonwealth,  had  ever 
received  more  humane  treatment  from  all  the  officers  of  the  law 
concerned  in  his  prosecution  than  had  been  extended  to  this  pris- 


ATTORNEY-GENERAL   CLIFFORD'S  HISTORY.  £45 

• 

oner,  and  that  no  one  had  ever  stood  condemned  by  the  verdict  of 
a  jury  after  a  fairer  and  more  impartial  trial.  He  knew  that  the 
sentence,  which  he  was  so  pressingly  urged  to  set  aside,  was  not  his 
sentence  upon  the  unhappy  criminal,  but  the  sentence  of  the  laws 
which  he  was  sworn  to  maintain,  and  that  to  warrant  his  interfer- 
ence with  it,  his  reason  and  judgment  must  be  convinced  that  the 
public  interest  would  be  subserved,  and  the  sacred  inviolability  of 
the  law  lose  none  of  its  sanctions  by  his  official  action. 

"Faithful  to  these  convictions  of  duty,  after  the  action  of  his 
Council  had  been  submitted  to  him,  he  drew  up  the  following 
admirable  paper,  announcing  the  conclusions  to  which  he  had  been 
led  by  the  review  of  the  case  before  him.  It  is  due  to  his  memory 
that  it  should  be  published  entire ;  for  while,  in  justice  to  the 
motives  by  which  he  was  actuated  in  this  exigent  and  trying  mo- 
ment of  his  official  career,  it  could  not  well  be  abbreviated,  it 
contains  a  clear  and  interesting  outline  of  the  history  of  one  of 
the  most  remarkable  cases  of  crime  that  has  ever  darkened  the 
pages  of  legal  or  human  annals  :  — 
"  '  To  the  Honorable  Council  : 

"  '  The  Council  having  considered  and  acted  upon  the  case  of 
John  W.  Webster,  a  convict  under  the  sentence  of  death,  it  now 
becomes  my  duty  as  the  Chief  Executive  Magistrate  of  the  Com- 
monwealth, to  make  a  final  decision  on  a  question  involving  the 
life  of  the  prisoner.  I  feel  the  weight  of  the  responsibility.  But 
it  is  a  responsibility  found  in  the  path  of  official  duty,  and  I  am 
not  disposed  to  evade  it  or  to  shrink  from  it.  For  eight  months 
past  this  extraordinary  case  has  created  a  deep  and  painful  inter- 
est among  the  people  of  Massachusetts  and  of  the  whole  Union. 
Its  history  is  as  brief  as  it  is  terrible  and  instructive.  Every  new 
development  in  its  progress  has  been  more  strange,  and  has 
increased  that  interest. 

"  '  On  the  23d  of  November,  1849,  Dr.  George  Parkman,  a  well- 
known  and  highly  respectable  citizen  of  Boston,  left  his  house  and 
family  on  business,  as  was  usual  for  him,  and  never  returned  to 
them.  His  unexpected  absence  alarmed  his  family,  and  excited  the 
attention  of  the  people  in  and  around  Boston.     In  the  course  of  a 

day  or  two,  it  was  understood  that  the  prisoner  had  said  that  Dr. 

21* 


246  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

Parkman  met  him  at  his  rooms  in  the  Medical  College,  in  the  west 
part  of  the  city,  not  far  from  half-past  one  o'clock  on  the  day  of 
his  disappearance,  and  that  he  then  and  there  paid  him  a  sum  of 
money,  which  he,  Dr.  Parkman,  took  into  his  hands,  and  thereupon 
hastily  rushed  from  the  room  towards  the  outer  door.  Dr.  Park- 
man  was  also  seen  by  other  persons,  about  the  same  time  of  day, 
within  forty  feet  of  the  Medical  College,  and  walking  quickly 
towards  it.  These,  with  other  circumstances,  directed  the  public 
mind  towards  the  college  buildings.  The  next  Friday,  one  week 
after  the  disappearance  of  Dr.  Parkman,  the  dismembered  parts  of 
a  human  body  were  found,  in  different  places,  in  and  under  the 
rooms  occupied  by  the  prisoner  in  that  college,  —  some  of  them  in 
a  furnace,  nearly  destrojTed  by  fire ;  some  of  them  packed  in  a  tea- 
chest  ;  and  other  parts  in  a  vault  of  a  privy  attached  to  his  labora- 
tory. Suspicions  were  strongly  fixed  upon  him,  and  he  was  arrested 
and  committed  to  Leverett  Street  jail.  A  coroner's  inquest  was 
called,  and,  after  a  long  investigation  of  the  facts  of  the  case 
conducted  in  secret,  the  jury  reported  that  the  remains  found  were 
parts  of  the  body  of  the  late  Dr.  George  Parkman ;  that  he  came 
to  his  death  by  violence,  in  the  Medical  College  in  Boston,  on  Fri- 
day the  23d  day  of  November,  and  that  he  was  killed  by  John  W. 
Webster. 

"  '  In  January,  1850,  the  case  was  laid  before  the  Grand  Jury  for 
the  County  of  Suffolk,  and  the  investigation  before  that  body 
resulted  in  finding  a  bill  of  indictment  against  the  prisoner  for  the 
wilful  murder  of  Dr.  Parkman.  He  was  arraigned  on  the  indict- 
ment, and  pleaded  not  guilty.  Two  of  the  most  able  and  distin- 
guished lawyers  of  the  Commonwealth  were  upon  his  own  selection 
assigned  to  him  for  counsel  by  the  Supreme  Court,  and  the  time 
for  his  trial  before  the  full  bench  fixed  for  the  nineteenth  day  of 
March.  Some  time  before  the  day  of  trial,  the  Attorney-General 
furnished  the  counsel  for  the  prisoner  not  only  the  names  of  the 
witnesses  examined  by  the  Grand  Jury,  which  is  required  in  all 
capital  cases  in  this  Commonwealth,  but  also  a  copy  of  the  testi- 
mony which  had  been  produced  against  him  before  that  body. 
The  time  appointed  for  the  trial  arrived,  when  four  judges  of  the 
Supreme  Court  were  present,  and  sat  during  the  trial.     In  pursu- 


ATTORNEY-GENERAL    CLIFFORD'S  HISTORY.  247 

ance  of  the  provisions  of  the  law,  sixty  jurors  had  been  drawn 
from  the  jury-box  in  the  County  of  Suffolk.  By  the  law  the  pris- 
oner had  a  right  peremptorily,  without  assigning  any  reason,  to 
challenge  twenty  jurors,  and,  for  sufficient  reasons,  to  object  to 
any  others  whose  names  might  be  called.  In  the  impanelling  of 
the  jury  who  tried  him,  the  prisoner  exercised  his  right  of  peremp- 
tory challenge  in  only  fourteen  instances.  The  trial  was  one  of 
surpassing  interest  and  solemnity,  and  lasted  eleven  days.  On 
the  part  of  the  prisoner  the  case  was  argued  with  great  earnest- 
ness, candor,  and  ability,  by  the  Hon.  Pliny  Merrick,  his  senior 
counsel,  and  the  case  was  closed  by  the  Attorney-General,  the 
Hon.  John  EL  Clifford,  in  an  address  of  singular  power  and  effect. 

"  'After  the  Attorney-General  had  finished  his  argument,  the 
Court  informed  the  prisoner  that  he  had  the  right,  which  he  might 
exercise  or  not  as  he  pleased,  to  make  such  remarks  to  the  jury  as 
he  saw  fit.  The  prisoner  arose,  and  for  some  time  addressed  the 
jury  in  his  own  behalf. 

"  'An  elaborate,  clear,  and  comprehensive  charge  was  given  by 
the  Chief  Justice,  after  consultation  with  the  other  members  of  the 
court  who  sat  with  him  at  the  trial.  The  Jury  retired  to  their 
room;  and,  after  an  absence  of  three  hours,  late  on  Saturday  even- 
ing, returned  into  court  with  a  verdict  of  guilty.  The  next  Mon- 
day morning  the  prisoner  was  again  brought  into  court,  and 
received  from  the  Chief  Justice  the  sentence  of  the  law,  which 
doomed  him  to  suffer  death  by  hanging,  at  such  time  as  the  Execu- 
tive of  the  Commonwealth  should  appoint.  In  a  few  days  a  copy 
of  the  record  of  his  conviction  was  transmitted  to  the  Governor 
and  Council,  agreeably  to  the  provisions  of  law,  by  the  sheriff  of 
the  county  of  Suffolk.  On  the  21th  of  April  the  prisoner  sent  by 
the  hand  of  his  friend  to  the  Governor  and  Council  a  petition  for  a 
pardon  under  his  own  hand,  on  the  ground  of  his  entire  innocence 
of  the  crime  of  which  he  had  been  convicted,  and  for  which  he 
was  under  sentence  of  death.  All  proceedings  upon  this  petition 
before  the  Executive  were  suspended,  in  consequence  of  having 
received  notice  from  the  counsel  of  the  prisoner  that  they  were 
about  to  make  application  to  the  Supreme  Court  for  a  writ  of  error 
to  issue  in  his  case,  on  account  of  certain  alleged  irregularities  said 


248  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

to  have  been  discovered  in  the  course  of  the  proceedings  against 
him.  That  application  was  heard  before  the  full  court,  all  the  five 
judges  being  present,  and  overruled.  In  the  opinion  of  the  court, 
pronounced  by  the  Chief  Justice,  all  the  proceedings  in  the  case 
were  declared  to  be  according  to  established  judicial  forms  and 
the  laws  of  the  Commonwealth. 

"  '  On  the  fourth  day  of  June,  and  before,  the  question  on  the 
writ  of  error  had  been  settled  by  the  Court,  the  Eev.  Dr.  Putnam, 
for  the  prisoner,  asked  to  be  permitted  to  withdraw  the  petition 
for  a  pardon  above  named,  from  further  consideration.  The  Gov- 
ernor and  Council  permitted  him  to  do  so,  and  the  petition  was 
placed  in  his  hands. 

" '  On  the  first  day  of  July,  Dr.  Putnam  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
Governor  another  petition,  signed  by  the  prisoner,  asking  for  a  com- 
mutation of  his  sentence.  On  the  2d  day  of  July  this  petition  was 
referred  to  the  Committee  on  Pardons,  and  on  the  same  day  Dr. 
Putnam  appeared  before  them  and  made  a  statement,  which  he  said 
was  authorized  by  the  prisoner,  in  which  the  prisoner  admitted 
that  he  killed  Dr.  Parkman,  at  the  time  and  in  the  place  charged 
against  him,  but  denied  that  the  act#was  premeditated.  He  nar- 
rated what  the  prisoner  declared  to  be  the  manner  of  killing,  and 
described  minutely  the  mode  and  process  by  which  the  body  of 
Dr.  Parkman  was  disposed  of  after  death.  The  prisoner  alleged 
that  ';  the  single  blow  with  a  stick  of  wood,"  by  which  Dr.  Park- 
man  was  killed,  was  given  by  him  in  a  moment  of  uncontrolled 
passion,  excited  by  the  insulting  language  heaped  upon  him  by  Dr. 
Parkman,  and  "  by  thrusting  a  letter  which  he  held  in  his  hand, 
and  his  fist  in  his  face,"  and  that  "  he  did  not  know,  nor  think,  nor 
care  where  he  should  hit  him,  or  how  hard,  nor  what  the  effect 
would  be."  Upon  the  statement  of  the  prisoner,  and  the  other 
facts  proved  at  the  trial,  Dr.  Putnam  addressed  the  committee  at 
length  in  an  able  and  impressive  argument  in  favor  of  a  commuta- 
tion of  the  sentence  of  the  Court.  A  petition  from  the  famity  of 
the  prisoner,  and  a  large  number  of  other  petitions  received  be- 
fore and  after  the  confession,  and  from  people,  men  and  women, 
in  other  States,  were  before  the  committee.  The  committee  gave 
three  other  hearings  to  those  who  wished  to  be  heard  in  aid  of 


ATTORNEY-GENERAL    CLIFFORD'S  HISTORY.  249 

the  prisoner's  petition,  and  in  support  of  the  views  of  Dr.  Put- 
nam. 

"  '  The  Committee  on  Pardons,  consisting  of  the  Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor and  four  other  Councillors,  after  a  full,  careful,  and  patient 
hearing,  came  to  a  unanimous  conclusion  that  there  were  no  suf- 
ficient reasons  to  justify  them  in  recommending  the  interposition 
of  Executive  clemency.  They  recommended  that  the  Governor  be 
advised  to  have  the  sentence  of  the  law,  as  pronounced  by  the 
Court,  carried  into  effect  on  the  30th  day  of  August  next.  The 
Council,  with  but  one  exception,  concurred  in  the  report  of  the 
committee,  and  advised  the  Governor  to  carry  out  the  sentence  of 
the  law  as  recommended  by  them. 

'"In  carefully  and  anxiously  examining  and  considering  the  case, 
I  do  not  feel  authorized,  by  any  considerations  which  have  been 
presented  to  my  mind,  to  set  aside  the  verdict  of  the  Jury,  arrest 
the  solemn  decree  of  the  law,  as  pronounced  by  the  highest  ju- 
dicial tribunal  of  the  Commonwealth,  and  disregard  the  deliberate 
opinion  and  advice  of  the  Council.  If  the  circumstances  of  the 
killing,  as  stated  by  the  prisoner,  are  taken  to  be  true,  it  may  well 
be  questioned  whether  the  Executive  could  interfere  without  do- 
ing violence  to  the  settled  laws  of  the  Commonwealth.  It  will 
hardly  be  pretended  by  any  one  that  the  declaration  of  a  prisoner 
under  sentence  of  death  should  be  permitted  to  outweigh  the 
doings  of  the  Court  and  Jury,  and  rescue  him  from  the  conse- 
quences that  are  to  follow  those  proceedings.  In  this  case,  it  is 
candidly  stated  by  Dr.  Putnam,  in  his  able  argument  for  the  pris- 
oner, and  in  several  petitions  presented  in  favor  of  commutation 
received  since  his  confession,  that,  standing  as  he  does,  the  word 
of  the  prisoner  is  entitled  to  no  credit.  If  the  circumstances  dis- 
closed on  the  trial  are  relied  upon  to  support  this  statement,  the 
reply  is  that  those  circumstances  were  urged  in  his  favor  before 
the  Jury,  and  they  have  decided  against  him. 

"  '  The  facts  of  this  appalling  case  are  before  the  world.  They 
will  forever  fill  one  of  the  gloomiest  pages  in  the  record  of  crime 
among  civilized  men.  It  is  undisputed  that  on  the  23d  day  of 
November,  1819,  John  "W.  Webster,  a  Professor  in  Harvard  Uni- 
versity, and  in  the  Medical  College  in  Boston,  did,  at  mid-day,  in 


250  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  RR1GGS. 

his  room  in  that  College,  within  a  few  feet  of  the  place  where  he 
daily  stood  to  deliver  scientific  lectures  to  a  large  class  of  young 
men,  with  unlawful  violence  take  the  life  of  Dr.  George  Parkman, 
a  respectable  citizen  of  Boston,  who  had  come  to  that  room  at 
the  request  of  the  prisoner;  that  after  taking  his  life,  he  eviscer- 
ated the  body  of  his  victim,  burning  parts  of  it  in  a  furnace,  and 
depositing  other  portions  of  it  in  different  parts  of  the  building, 
where  they  were  found  b^^  persons  who  were  seeking  after  Dr. 
Parkman;  that,  after  killing  him,  he  robbed  his  lifeless  creditor  by 
taking  from  him  two  notes  of  hand  signed  by  himself,  to  which  he 
had  no  right,  and  committed  still  another  crime  by  making  false 
marks  upon  those  notes ;  and  that  a  jury  of  his  country,  impan- 
elled according  to  law  under  the  direction  of  four  of  the  five  emi- 
nent judges  constituting  the  Supreme  Judicial  Court  of  Massa- 
chusetts, after  a  long,  patient,  and  impartial  trial,  and  after  hearing 
in  his  defence  the  arguments  of  learned  and  eloquent  counsel, 
upon  their  oaths  found  him  guilty  of  wilful  murder.  Upon  that 
verdict  the  Court  pronounced  the  awful  sentence  of  death.  In 
such  a  case,  there  should  be  obvious  and  controlling  reasons  to 
sustain  the  pardoning  power  in  interfering  to  arrest  the  sword  of 
justice.  I  do  not  see  these  reasons.  All  the  circumstances  of 
this  most  lamentable  case  force  me  to  the  conclusion,  that  the 
safety  of  the  community,  the  inviolability  of  the  law,  and  the  prin- 
ciples of  impartial  justice  demand  the  execution  of  the  sentence. 
'"I  hope  it  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  say  that  it  would  have  given 
me  Unspeakable  pleasure  to  come  to  a  different  result,  and  that  I 
would  do  anything  on  earth  in  my  power,  short  of  violating  duty, 
to  alleviate  the  sufferings  of  a  crushed  and  broken-hearted  family. 

"<G.  N.  Briggs.' 
"  '  Council  Chamber,  July  19,  1850.' 

"  The  conclusions  thus  reached  by  Governor  Briggs,  found  their 
complete  justification  in  the  most  impartial  criticisms  of  this  case 
by  professional  writers,  both  at  home  and  abroad;  among  these 
may  be  mentioned  those  of  Professor  Mittermaier,  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Heidelberg,  one  of  the  most  learned  and  accomplished 
jurisprudents  of  continental  Europe,  and  of  Samuel  Warren,  a 
leading  English  barrister,  well  known  by  his  writings  both  in 


ALTORZsEY-GENERAL   CLIFFORD'S   HISTORY.  251 

literature  and  the  law.  In  concluding  a  series  of  articles  in  Black- 
wood's Magazine,  entitled  'Modern  Criminal  Trials,'  this  author 
says,  — 

"  '  It  was  our  intention  to  have  included  in  this  paper  a  sketch  of 
a  great  American  trial  for  murder, — that  of  the  late  Professor 
"Webster,  for  the  murder  of  Dr.  Parkman ;  a  fearful  occurrence,  — 
a  black  and  dismal  tragedy  from  beginning  to  end,  exhibiting  most 
remarkable  indications,  as  it  appears  to  us,  «of  that  overruling 
Providence  which  sometimes  sees  fit  to  allow  its  awful  agency  in 
human  affairs  to  become  visible  to  us. 

"  '  The  circumstances  attending  the  murder  were  invested  with 
enthralling  interest,  and  it  has  to  the  eye  of  the  moralist  some  very 
hideous  features.  The  efforts  made  by  the  prisoner  —  a  man  of 
intellect,  learning,  and  high  professional  station  —  to  avert  sus- 
picion and  escape  from  the  awful  consequences  of  crime,  are 
sickening  to  read  of.  His  idiosyncrasy,  also,  is  a  psychological 
study ;  and  the  network  of  circumstantial  evidence  in  which  he 
became  inextricably  enmeshed,  will  be  regarded  with  watchful 
interest  alike  by  lay  and  professional  readers.'  l 

"  But  the  most  decisive  testimony  on  this  point,  and  that  which 
most  completely  sustained  the  course  taken  by  Governor  Briggs  in 
the  discharge  of  his  responsible  trust,  came  from  Dr.  Webster 
himself.  It  is  interesting  as  evidence  of  the  irrepressible  nature 
of  truth  when  all  motives  for  concealing  or  distorting  it  are  re- 
moved from  the  mind  of  the  most  hardened  criminal,  and  furnishes 
a  fit  conclusion  to  this  review  of  Governor  Briggs  in  connection 
with  this  memorable  chapter  in  the  history  of  crime.  After  all 
hope  of  a  pardon  or  a  commutation  of  his  sentence  had  been  extin- 
guished, and  when  he  had  seriously  and  with  singleness  of  purpose 
addressed  himself  to  the  great  work  of  making  his  peace  with  his 
Maker,  in  which,  under  the  guidance  and  with  the  inestimable  aid 
of  his  spiritual  adviser,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Putnam,  it  is  hoped  he  was 
successful;  on  the  25th  of  August,  the  Sunday  preceding  his  execu- 

1  The  following  well-deserved  compliment  is  contained  in  the  article  referred  to 
above  :  "  The  argument  of  Mr.  Clifford  for  the  prosecution  cannot  be  excelled  in 
clear  and  conclusive  reasoning,  conveyed  in  language  equally  elegant  and  forci- 
ble.   Its  effect  as  a  demonstration  of  the  guilt  of  the  accused  is  fearful." 


252  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  K.  BRIGGS. 

tion,  Dr.  Webster  sought  an  interview  with  the  jailer,  Mr.  Gustavus 
Andrews.  After  some  conversation  relative  to  the  approaching 
event  of  his  execution,  and  his  sense  of  Mr.  Andrews's  kindness  to 
him,  he  requested  of  Mr.  Andrews,  as  a  favor,  that  he  would  pre- 
pare his  person  for  the  scaflbld.  Mr.  Andrews  replied  that  he  was 
under  the  direction  of  the  sheriff,  but  if  it  was  of  any  consequence 
to  him  he  would  endeavor  to  comply  with  his  request.  This  sub- 
ject disposed  of,  Professor  Webster  then  went  on  to  say :  '  Mr. 
Andrews,  I  consider  this  whole  thing  perfect  justice  !  The  officers  of 
the  law  are  right!  Everybody  is  right;  and  lam  wrong  !  And  I  feel 
that  if  the  yielding  up  of  my  life  to  the  injured  law  will  atone,  even  in 
part,  for  the  crime  I  have  committed,  that  is  a  consolation  V 

"  Subsequently  to  the  above  interview,  and  two  dajrs  before  the 
execution,  Sheriff  Eveleth  called  on  the  prisoner  to  prepare  him 
for  the  final  discharge  of  his  official  duty,  when  in  the  course  of 
conversation,  in  allusion  to  a  suggestion  that  had  been  made  of 
the  possibility  of  suicide,  the  sheriff  remarked  that  he  inferred 
from  the  prisoner's  statement  he  entertained  no  idea  of  attempting 
to  avoid  the  execution  by  any  act  of  his  own. 

"  '  Why  should  I?'  replied  Professor  Webster.  '  All  the  proceed- 
ings in  my  case  have  been  just.  The  Court  discharged' their  duty. 
The  law  officers  of  the  Commonwealth  did  their  duty  and  no  more! 
The  verdict  of  the  Jury  was  just !  The  sentence  of  the  Court  was  just ; 
and  it  is  just  that  I  should  die  on  the  scaffold,  in  accordance  with  that 
sentence.''  " 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

CLOSE  OF  HIS  GUBERNATORIAL  LIFE  —  HIS  ADDRESS  DECLINING  A  RE- 
NOMINATION —ANNIVERSARY  ORATION  AT  CONCORD,  MASS.  — A  CANDI- 
DATE IN  SPITE  OF  HIMSELF  —  DEFEATED  IN  THE  LEGISLATURE  —  LETTERS 
TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  — HIS  RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE — HIS  OWN  REVIEW 
OF  HIS  PUBLIC   LIFE  — TRIBUTE  FROM  ANOTHER. 

^HE  year  1850  was  the  last  of  that  term  of  seven 
3rears  during  which  Governor  Briggs  administered 
the  affairs  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts, 
—  with  the  single  exception  of  that  of  Caleb 
Strong,1  the  longest  term  of  such  service  in  the 
history  of  the  State. 

In  the  spring  of  this  year  the  cares  of  state  oppressed 
him  with  so  much  force,  that  the  .desire  to  lay  them  aside 
prevailed  with  him  to  decline  a  re-nomination.  The  dread- 
ful responsibilities  from  which  he  did  not  shrink  in  the  case 
reported  in  the  preceding  chapter,  were  still  vivid  in  his 
remembrance,  and  no  doubt  quickened  his  purpose  of  retir- 
ing from  a  position  which  involved  him  in  the  hazard  of 
meeting  other  terrible  emergencies. 

The  following  address  bears  date  of  April  27,  1850  :  — 

To  the  Electors  of  Massachusetts: 

Fellow-Citizens, — By  your  favor  I  have  been  seven  times 
chosen  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth,  —  three  times  by  a  ma- 
jority of  the  popular  vote,  and  four  times,  after  having  received  a 

l  Caleb  Strong  was  Governor  of  Massachusetts  from  1800  to  1807,  a  period  just 
as  long  as  that  of  Governor  Briggs's  service.    He  was,  however,  Governor  a 
second  time,  from  1812  to  1816,  making  his  whole  period  of  service  eleven  years. 
22  253 


254  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  ERIGGS. 

large  plurality  of  that  vote.  I  have  been  chosen  by  a  majority  of 
both  branches  of  the  Legislature. 

Deeming  it  not  improbable  that  my  name,  amongst  others,  might 
be  thought  of  for  the  same  place  at  the  approaching  election.  I  take 
this  occasion  to  announce  my  purpose  of  not  again  being  a  candi- 
date for  the  high  office. 

In  respectfully  declining  to  be  any  longer  a  candidate  for  the 
suffrages  of  mv  fellow-citizens,  I  have  no  lansnasre  bv  which  to  ex- 
press  to  them  the  gratitude  I  feel  for  the  honors  conferred  upon  me 
by  the  repeated  testimonials  of  their  confidence.  While  I  express 
my  obligations  to  these  generous  and  constant  friends  by  whose 
votes  I  have  been  elevated  to  office,  it  is  but  justice  to  my  political 
opponents  to  say  that  I  have  received  kind  and  considerate  treat- 
ment from  them. 

Previous  to  being  chosen  Governor,  I  had  been  six  times 
elected  to  Congress  by  the  freemen  of  the  Seventh  Congressional 
District.  I  take  great  pleasure  in  declaring  that  it  has  rarely  been 
the  fortune  of  one  who  has  been  nineteen  years  in  public  life,  and 
who  has  thirteen  times  passed  the  ordeal  of  popular  election,  to 
have  had  so  little  cause  to  complain  of  the  treatment  of  political 
opponents  as  I  have  had. 

I  shall  carry  with  me  into  retirement  no  unkind  or  hostile  feel- 
ings toward  any  fellow-being.  If  I  have  given  just  occasion  for 
others  to  entertain  such  feelings  towards  me,  I  should  be  most 
happy  to  be  informed  of  it,  and  to  have  the  opportunity  of  doing 
them  justice.  Upon  his  native  Commonwealth,  under  whose  free 
and  fostering  constitution  one  of  the  humblest  of  her  people  has 
been  raised  by  the  suffrages  of  her  voters  to  the  chair  of  her  chief 
magistracy,  a  grateful  son  will  never  cease  to  implore  the  blessing 
of  Heaven.  Long  may  her  people  be  prosperous  and  happy ;  may 
intelligence  and  virtue  be  the  stability  of  their  times.  In  their 
politics,  may  they  be  enlightened,  consistent,  and  honest ;  in 
their  religion,  sincere  and  charitable  and  blameless ;  in  their  deal- 
ings and  intercourse  with  each  other,  and  in  their  transactions 
with,  and  their  conduct  towards  their  sister  States,  may  they  be 
just,  fearing  God. 

With  heart-felt  and  lasting  respect,  I  am  your  friend  and  fellow- 
citizen, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 


ANNIVERSARY  ORATION  AT  CONCORD,   MASS.  255 

Of  the  numerous  public  services  in  which  Governor 
Briggs  formed  a  conspicuous  official  part,  few  were  more 
interesting  than  the  seventv-fifth  anniversary  of  the  nine- 
teenth  of  April,  1775,  in  Concord,  Mass.  Upon  this  occa- 
sion he  delivered  the  following  oration,  which  is  worthy  to 
be  preserved  with  the  best  memorials  of  his  public  life  :  — 

"  Mr.  President,  —  The  sentiment  in  honor  of  our  ancient  Com- 
monwealth which  you  have  just  announced  speaks  for  itself.  It 
requires  no  response  from  me.  As  children,  we  all  love  and  honor 
her ;  and  I  trust  it  will  not  be  deemed  improper  on  this  occasion 
for  me  to  say  that  her  character  and  history  from  the  time  of  pro- 
vincial dependence  to  the  present  time,  and  her  standing  among 
her  sister  States,  entitles  her  to  the  love  and  reverence  of  her 
children.  But,  sir,  if  upon  the  great  theme  which  this  day  fills  all 
hearts,  I  had  anything  to  say  when  I  came  here,  let  me  tell  you 
the  all-grasping  reapers  who  have  preceded  me  have  taken  it  all 
away. 

"Far  back  in  distant  ages,  when  a  Moabitish  stranger  went  into 
the  field  of  one  of  the  magnates  of  the  land  of  Canaan  '  to  glean 
and  gather  after  the  reapers  among  the  sheaves,'  the  lord  of  the 
harvest  commanded  his  reapers  to  let  the  damsel  'glean  even 
among  the  sheaves,  and  reproach  her  not.'  I  wish  that  these  gen- 
tlemen had  shown  a  little  of  the  humanity  and  kindness  of  that 
Oriental  landholder.  Why,  sir,  in  my  solicitude  I  have  been 
searching  the  field,  and  can  find  scarcely  a  head  of  wheat  left. 
There  is,  however,  one  thing  that  they  have  not  said  in  connection 
with  the  nineteenth  of  April,  1775.  They  did  not  state  the  his- 
toric fact  that  the  incursion  of  the  British  army  on  that  day  was 
the  first  and  the  last  time,  since  Massachusetts  has  had  a  political 
existence,  when  a  foreign  enemy  has  penetrated  so  far  into  her 
territory.  This  is  a  truth  which  her  people  may  regard  with  pride 
and  with  gratitude.  Few  States  nearly  two  hundred  and  fifty 
years  old  can  say  as  much.  I  trust  the  result  of  that  experiment 
will  admonish  her  enemies,  if  enemies  she  shall  ever  have,  that  the 
experiment  had  better  not  be  repeated.    That  proved  legion  of 


2oG  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE    X.  BRIGGS. 


loyalists  expected  as  they  advanced  to  see  the  pale  and  trembling 
rebels  sh  ink  and  flee  before  them.  Great  was  their  disappoint- 
ment! Sir,  what  a  day  was  that  for  Massachusetts!  Well  did 
Samuel  Adams  exclaim,  when  he  heard  the  volley  at  Lexington : 
'  Oh,  what  a  glorious  morning  is  this!'  Words  of  prophecy  and 
patriotism!  They  will  be  repeated  with  enthusiastic  awe,  and 
inspire  the  lovers  of  freedom  to  the  latest  generation. 

"Mr.  President,  I  wish  that  venerable  old  man,  who  but  this 
moment  stood  before  these  assembled  thousands,  could  rehearse 
in  our  hearing  the  thrilling  incidents  of  that  auspicious  morning. 
When  on  a  visit  to  Lexington  last  winter,  one  who  participated  in 
those  incidents  told  me  that  on  the  bright  moonlight  evening  that 
preceded  the  morning  of  the  nineteenth  of  April,  while  returning 
to  his  father's  house,  for  he  had  been  out  fifing  for  a  company  of 
boys,  he  met  several  British  officers  on  horseback,  who  preceded 
the  army  which  came  before  the  rising  sun.  After  reaching  home 
and  retiring  to  bed,  about  one  o'clock  his  mother,  calling  to  him 
from  the  chamber  door,  said,  '  Jonathan,  you  must  get  up ;  the  regu- 
lars are  coming,  and  something  must  be  done!'  The  hoary-headed 
patriarch  who  has  just  retired  from  your  sight  was  the  boy,  who  by 
his  more  than  Spartan  mother  seventy-five  years  ago  was  summoned 
to  get  up  in  the  middle  of  the  night,  and  'to  do  something,'  for  'the 
regulars  were  coming.'  Jonathan  got  up ;  and  what  do  you  think 
he  did  ?  What  could  a  boy  sixteen  years  old  do  in  such  an  emer- 
gency ?  I'll  tell  you  what  he  did.  He  went  out  and  blew  that  shrill 
little  fife,  to  alarm  the  neighbors,  rally  the  minute  men,  and  call  the 
patriots  together.  Mothers  of  Massachusetts,  do  you  hear  that? 
Young  men  of  Massachusetts,  do  you  hear  that  ?  '  The  regulars  are 
coming  ! '  And  who  were  the  regulars  ?  They  were  the  embodied 
power  of  the  British  kingdom,  the  armed  representatives  of  the 
British  king,  —  disciplined,  brave,  and  obedient  soldiers,  com- 
manded by  gallant  and  choice  officers,  — advancing  in  the  stillness 
of  the  night  to  drive  back  the  rebels  and  seize  upon  their  military 
stores  in  a  neighboring  town.  At  the  approach  of  such  an  army 
at  that  awful  hour,  we  hear  the  voice  of  an  American  mother,  call- 
ing her  boy  to  leave  his  bed,  'to  get  up,'  and  do  something.  Before 
he  saw  the  sun  on  that  bright  and  ominous  morning,  he  stood  by 


AXXIVERSARY  ORATION.AT  COXCORD,   MASS.  257 

the  side  of  the  stout-hearted  Parker  at  the  head  of  his  company 
on  Lexington  green,  and  raised  the  martial  blood  of  his  country- 
men by  the  piercing  notes  of  his  spirit-stirring  life.  There  he  stood 
with  that  little  band  of  armed  freemen  hastily  called  together  in 
the  very  presence  of  British  legions.  He  saw  the  dauntless  Pit- 
cairn  at  their  head.  He  heard  the  order  given  to  load  with  powder 
and  ball,  and  saw  it  executed.  He  saw  them  march  up  with  an 
imperious  and  threatening  air.  He  heard  the  word,  '  Rebels,  dis- 
perse ! '  '  Rebels,  lay  down  your  arms  ! '  He  saw  the  flash  and  the 
smoke,  and  heard  the  sharp  report  of  the  guns  which  broke  the 
stillness  of  that  first  morning  of  the  American  Revolution.  Yes, 
sir ;  he  was  in  the  midst  of  that  great  scene !  Those  eyes,  now 
dimmed  with  the  visions  of  a  hundred  years,  saw  it,  —  that  heart, 
now  feebly  beating  in  that  aged  breast,  felt  it ! 

"  The  first  martyrs  in  the  great  cause  of  their  country  fell  at 
Lexington;  and  the  fratricidal  host  marched  on  to  Concord. 
Faithful  couriers  and  deep-toned  bells  aroused  the  patriots  of 
Concord  and  the  adjoining  towns,  who  had  heard  of  the  massacre 
of  their  neighbors,  and  they  were  prepared  to  meet  the  approach- 
ing foe.  At  the  old  North  Bridge  that  foe  again  fired  upon  the 
peaceful  yeomanry  of  Massachusetts,  still  firmly  standing  in  de- 
fence of  their  rights.  The  blood  of  other  victims  gushed  and 
flowed  upon  the  soil.  The  fire  was  returned,  and  two  British  sol- 
diers fell.  The  enemy  hastily  retreated.  Here  sits  Amos  Baker, 
the  sole  survivor  of  that  memorable  fight.  That  arm  now  enfee- 
bled with  age,  then  youthful  and  strong,  helped  to  drive  back  the 
enemies  of  his  country.  Thank  God  that  these  two  only  remain- 
ing actors  in  the  scenes  of  that  day  —  the  one  at  Lexington,  the 
other  at  Concord — are  here  to  heighten  the  interest  of  this  seventy- 
fifth  anniversary.  They  are  here  for  the  last  time ;  and  the  youth 
who  now  look  upon  them  will  in  their  old  age  relate  with  patriotic 
emotion,  to  the  children  of  a  generation  not  yet  born,  the  wonder- 
ful fact  that  they  saw,  in  1850,  two  soldiers  who  fought  at  Lexing- 
ton and  Concord.  When,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Lexington, 
Samuel  Adams  heard  the  guns,  he  exclaimed,  '  Oh,  what  a  glorious 
morning  is  this  /'  Early  on  the  same  morning,  as  General  Warren 
landed  at  Charlestown  from  the  ferry-boat  which  had  brought  him 

22* 


253  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  ElilGGS. 

over  from  Boston,  on  being  asked  what  lie  thought  of  the  political 
prospect  of  the  times,  replied,  '■Keep  up  a  brave  heart;  they  have 
begun  it,  —  that  either  party  could  do  ; —  we'll  end  it,  —  that  only  one 
can  do.'  A  soldier  at  Concord  said:  '  The  war  is  now  begun;  the 
Lord  only  knows  where  it  will  end.' 

"  This  remarkable  sentiment,  uttered  by  noble  patriots  on  the 
same  day  in  different  places,  shows  how  the  spirit  of  freedom  per- 
vaded the  hearts  of  the  people  of  Massachusetts.  It  was  a  glorious 
day  for  Lexington  and  Concord  and  Middlesex,  for  Massachusetts 
and  the  thirteen  British  colonies.  It  was  a  glorious  day  for  lib- 
erty, for  patriotism,  for  humanity.  Every  blow  struck  for  liberty 
amongst  men,  since  the  nineteenth  of  April,  1775,  has  but  echoed 
the  guns  of  that  eventful  morning. 

"Mr.  President,  I  give  you  this  sentiment:  The  nineteenth  of 
April,  1775,  —  with  the  patriotic  and  prophetic  exclamation  of 
Samuel  Adams,  when  he  heard  the  guns  at  Lexington,  '  Oh,  what  a 
glorious  morning  is  this ! '  " 

The  sturdy  and  independent  "  electors,"  to  whom  Gov- 
ernor Briggs  declared  his  intention  of  retiring  from  their 
service,  exercised  their  "  independence"  in  paying  no  heed 
to  his  address.  He  was  again  nominated,  and  at  the  elec- 
tion, for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  he  was  defeated.  His 
defeat,  however,  was  not  directly  from  the  people,  of  whose 
votes  he  received  a  very  large  plurality.  It  was  in  the 
Legislature,  into  which  the  election  was  thrown,  that  the 
hitherto  invariable  fortune  of  his  political  ventures  deserted 
him.  He  had  the  satisfaction  of  knowing,  however,  that 
he  himself  had  taken  the  initiative  in  the  matter  of  his  re- 
tirement. He  thus  writes  to  his  daughter  after  the  result 
was  declared :  — 

PlTTSFIELD,  NOV.,  1850. 

My  dear  Daughter  : 

The  result  of  the  election  you  have  learned  ere  this.  It  was 
not  unexpected  to  me.     1  have  no  cause  to  complain  of  anybody, 


LETTERS   TO  HIS  DAUGHTER.  259 

for  I  have  already  had  more  political  success  than  I  had  any  claim 

to.     I  hope  I  have  not  been  instrumental  in  the  defeat  of  the  Whig 

cause,  for  I  believe  it  a  just  and  patriotic  one;  but  I  would  not  have 

done,  or  consented  to  the  doing  of  an  unjust  or  improper  thing  to 

have  saved  it  from  defeat. 

Your  mother  thinks  she  shall  have  company  this  winter. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

What  hand  could  so  fitly  record  the  close  of  his  long  pub- 
lic service  as  his  own,  and  it  is  so  humbly  and  yet  so 
nobly  done  in  the  following  letter  to  his  daughter,  that  the 
letter  itself  ought  to  be  a  part  of  his  public  portraiture, 
and  is  therefore  included  therein  :  — 

Boston,  9th  Jan.,  1851. 
My  dear  Daughter  : 

I  felt  sad  enough,  to  read  in  Henry's  letter  of  the 

ruin  of  the  old  church  in  Pittsfield.  It  seemed  melancholy  to  feel 
that  those  venerable  walls,  hallowed  by  so  many  sacred  and  en- 
dearing recollections  and  associations,  were  smouldering  and 
fallen.  How  many  prayers  and  songs  of  praise  have  been  heard 
within  their  inclosure.  And  then  the  truth-telling  clock,  true  to 
its  trust,  struck  the  hour  on  the  old  bell  when  enveloped  in  smoke 
and  fire,  as  if  it  were  resolved  to  be  true  and  faithful  to  the  end. 

To-morrow  or  next  day  I  expect  to  close  my  public  life. 

In  looking  back  upon  the  seven  years  that  I  have  been  Governor, 
I  am  not  conscious  of  doing  any  public  act  that  I  did  not  believe 
to  be  right,  and  for  the  best  good  of  the  State.  If  the  Judge  of 
all  the  Earth  approves  my  intentions,  I  know  He  will  pardon  my 
imperfections.  That  approval,  I  shall  now  esteem  above  all  the 
applause  of  men,  and  hereafter  it  will  be  worth  more  than  all  the 
world.  For  the  future,  my  unimportant  life  will  be  retirement.  I 
know  I  desire  to  have  it  useful.  What  my  opinions  and  feelings 
are  I  know,  and  I  am  sure  that  the  political  world  have  but  little 
sympathy  with  those  views  and  feelings.  I  hope  my  honest  efibrts 
are  not  entirely  overlooked  and  disregarded  by  the  wise  and  good, 


£00  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

and  I  hope  for  a  little  while  the  poor  and  needy  ones  will  remem- 
ber me  with  pleasure,  and  feel  that  I  am  their  friend ;  and  oh.  if  I 
shall  be  so  happy  as  to  be  remembered  by  the  Saviour  in  the  day 
when  he  makes  up  his  jewels,  it  will  be  enough. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

Governor  Briggs  went  to  Boston  at  the  opening  of  the 
Legislative  session  in  1851,  to  resign  his  office  and  author- 
ity to  his  successor. 

Before  this  was  done,  he  received  from  the  honorable 
Board  of  Councillors,  with  whom  he  had  been  associated, 
the  following  letter,  conveying  to  him  the  expression  of 
their  official  and  personal  regard  and  esteem  :  — 

Council  Chamber,  Jan.  11,  1851. 
To  his  Excellency,  Geo.  N.  Briggs  : 

Dear  Sir,  —  As  the  time  is  at  hand  when  our  term  of  service 
will  expire,  and  we  shall  each  return  to  his  home,  no  more  to  be 
summoned  to  meet  you  in  Council,  we  deem  it  proper  at  parting, 
to  present  to  you  some  of  the  impressions  made  upon  our  minds 
arising  from  our  connection  with  you,  in  the  public  service,  the 
year  past. 

That  our  duties  always  responsible,  and  in  many  instances  pe- 
culiarly trying,  have  been  made  easy,  and  for  the  most  part  agree- 
able, is  owing  in  no  small  measure  to  the  kindness  with  which  you 
have,  on  all  occasions,  imparted  to  each  of  us,  from  your  large 
stores  of  wisdom  and  experience.  That  our  action  has  always 
been  so  harmonious  is  likewise  due,  in  no  small  degree,  to  the 
frankness  with  which  you  have  expressed  your  opinions  when 
solicited  to  do  so,  to  your  desire  to  hear  the  opinion  of  others, 
and  to  the  kind  and  uniform  deference  which  you  have,  in  all 
cases,  paid  to  those  opinions.  If  the  Executive  administration  of 
the  Government  has  been  satisfactory  to  the  people,  and  we  firmly 
believe  it  has  been,  it  may  be  ascribed  mainly  to  the  fact,  that  our 
Chief  Magistrate  has  been  governed  by  one  single  motive,  -  -  an 


HIS  RETIREMENT  FROM  OFFICE.  £G1 

ardent  desire  to  promote  the  public  welfare,  uninfluenced  by  fear, 
favor,  or  affection,  and  guided  by  strong  discriminating  judgment. 
We  were  sent  to  you  by  the  people  of  Massachusetts  to  be  your 
Councillors.  Some  of  us  met  you  as  strangers,  with  no  common 
tie,  except  that  of  being  members  of  the  same  political  party,  en- 
gaged in  the  same  cause  as  servants  of  the  Commonwealth.  But 
not  thus  do  we  part.  Our  connection  with  you,  which  is  now  to 
be  severed,  has  led  us  to  look  from  the  magistrate  to  the  man ; 
aDd  in  him  we  have  found  one  whom  we  shall  ever  be  pleased  and 
proud  to  call  our  friend,  and  to  whom,  in  private  life,  it  will  be  a 
greater  satisfaction  to  render  a  personal  service,  whenever  it  may 
be  in  the  power  of  either  of  us  to  do  so,  than  it  has  been  to  aid 
the  magistrate  in  the  affairs  of  Government,  however  cheerfully 
and  freely  that  aid  may  at  any  time  have  been  rendered. 

With  the  warmest  wishes  that  prosperity  may  attend  your  future 
course  in  life,  and  that  you  may  realize  the  full  share  of  happiness 
which  falls  to  the  lot  of  the  most  favored  among  men,  we  now  bid 

you  an  affectionate  farewell. 

Your  friends, 

Samuel  Wood,  Solomon  Davis, 

Timothy  Gridley,  Thomas  Tolman, 

John  Texxey,  P.  S.  Copelaxd, 

Chas.  M.  Owex,  Sam'l  L.  Crocker, 

Luther  V.  Bell. 

His  last  official  act  as  Governor,  was  to  make  the  ad- 
dress of  Inauguration  and  greeting  to  the  newly-elected 
incumbent  of  that  Chair  of  State,  from  which  he  was  retir- 
ing with  enviable  fame.  He  thus  addressed  Governor 
Boutwell :  — 

"  May  it  please  your  Excellency  : 

"  Seven  years  ago,  I  was  introduced  into  that  chair  by  a  dis- 
tinguished citizen  who  had  been  chosen  Governor  by  that  one  of 
the  political  parties  which  has  placed  you  in  power.  In  obedience 
to  the  command  of  the  majority  of  the  Legislature,  uttered  accord- 
ing to  the  forms  of  the  Constitution,  I  now  surrender  it  to  you 


262  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

and  retire.  Sir,  no  human  institutions  are  perfect,  but  I  believe 
the  sun  does  not  shine  upon  any  political  community  numbering  a 
million  of  people,  which  enjoys  greater  physical,  civil,  educational, 
and  moral  blessings,  than  the  people  of  Massachusetts  enjoy. 

''Allow  me,  sir,  to  say,  that  whoever  may  administer  her  gov- 
ernment, as  long  as  I  live,  I  shall  rejoice  in  her  prosperity  and 
renown." 

To  which  Governor  Boutwell  replied  :  — 

"Governor  Briggs,  —  I  have  accepted  the  office  to  which  I 
have  been  called,  agreeably  to  the  Constitution,  with  great  dis- 
trust of  myself,  and  with  the  deepest  solicitude ;  but  the  entrance 
to  its  duties  has  been  rendered  pleasant  by  the  kindness  you  have 
extended  to  me  on  this  occasion. 

"  It  is  your  satisfaction,  sir,  that  you  retire  from  a  position 
which  you  have  so  ably  and  honorably  occupied,  with  a  degree  of 
popular  support  which  neither  was,  nor  could  have  been  accorded 
to  any  other  man." 

"  And  however  honorable  may  be  the  position  of  the  public  ser- 
vant who  enters  upon  the  discharge  of  important  duties,  the 
position  of  that  public  servant  who  retires  with  the  consciousness 
of  having  justly  performed  them,  is  much  more  enviable.  If  at 
the  close  of  my  term  of  office  such  shall  be  my  fortune,  as  it  is 
now  yours,  that  occasion  will  be  more  agreeable  to  me  than  the 
present." 

Before  this  chapter  of  his  life  is  brought  to  a  close,  it  is 
fitting  that  his  own  review  of  all  the  period  he  had  now 
spent  in  the  public  service,  should  be  included  with  the 
testimonies  and  reminiscences  of  others. 

He  left  among  his  papers  such  a  review  in  his  own  hand 
—  brief  but  comprehensive,  and  not  more  remarkable  for 
its  terseness  than  for  its  modest}^  and  simplicity. 

It  is  impossible  to  read  it  without  obtaining  from  it  an 
impression  of  the   simple  dignit}',  the  sterling  integrity, 


HIS   OJVX  REVIEW  OF  HIS  PUBLIC  LIFE.  2G3 

and  the  true  but  unobtrusive  greatness  of  his  character, 
which  all  that  others  have  said  of  these  qualities  may  yet 
have  failed  so  happily  and  convincingly  to  express. 

It  is  needless  to  detain  the  reader  longer  from  this  self- 
recorded  abstract  of  his  popular  services  :  — 

"  I  was  six  times  elected  to  Congress  from  the  Berkshire  Dis- 
trict, and  seven  times  chosen  Governor  of  Massachusetts.  I  never 
asked  a  man  to  vote  for  me  for  either  of  these  offices,  or  asked  a 
man  to  attend  a  political  convention  where  I  was  nominated,  or  to 
use  any  influence  in  any  way  to  promote  my  election  to  either  of 
these  offices. 

"During  the  seven  years  I  was  Governor  of  Massachusetts,  I 
nominated  four  Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court  and  fourteen  of  the 
Court  of  Common  Pleas.  Seventeen  of  them  were  appointed  and 
confirmed — one  who  was  nominated  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  — 
Charles  Allen,  of  Worcester — declined  after  he  was  nominated,  and 
his  nomination  was  withdrawn.  The  nomination  of  Judge  of  the 
Supreme  Court  was  once  offered  to  Eufus  Choate,  but  he  declined 
it.  I  do  not  now  remember,  in  all  the  appointments,  that  there 
was  a  personal  request  from  a  single  one  of  the  persons  appointed, 
or  anything  like  a  personal  solicitation  on  the  part  of  their  friends. 
When  there  was  no  personal  acquaintance  on  the  part  of  the  Exec- 
utive of  persons  named  or  thought  of,  inquiries  were  made  as  to 
qualifications  of  individuals,  of  men  of  high  professional  standing, 
but  not  of  politicians. 

"The  persons  appointed  to  the  Supreme  Court  were  Theron 
Metcalf  of  Dedham,  Richard  Fletcher  and  George  T.  Bigelow  of 
Boston,  and  Charles  E.Forbes  of  Northampton.  Those  appointed 
to  the  Bench  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  were  Daniel  Wells, 
Chief  Justice,  of  Greenfield,  Charles  E.  Forbes  of  Northampton, 
Horatio  Byington  of  Stockbridge,  Emory  Washburn  and  Pliny 
Merrick  of  Worcester,  Thomas  Hopkinson  of  Lowell,  Edward 
Mellen  of  Wayland,  E.  Rockwood  Hoar  of  Concord,  Luther  S. 
Cushing  and  George  T.  Bigelow  of  Boston,  Joshua  H.  Ward  and 
Jonathan  C.  Perkins  of  Salem,  and  H.  G.  O.  Colby  of  New  Bed- 


264  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

ford.  The  office  of  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  was  indirectly 
offered  to  two  other  distinguished  lawyers  of  Boston,  both  of  whom 
declined  it. 

"  In  looking  back  upon  the  official  acts  of  my  life  I  do  not,  at 
this  time,  see  any  reason  to  regret  the  selections  that  were  made 
for  these  important  and  responsible  situations. 

"I  wrote  seven  annual  messages  to  the  Legislature.  Being 
unacquainted  practically  with  the  Government  of  Massachusetts, 
I  read  the  first  message  to  a  friend  who  was  well  acquainted  with 
the  affairs  of  the  Commonwealth.  With  that  exception,  no  man, 
during  the  seven  years,  ever  saw  or  heard  a  message,  knew  or 
asked  what  was  in  it,  or  requested  me  to  put  in  or  leave  out  any- 
thing of  any  message  which  I  wrote.  The  only  exception  is  the 
one  named  above,  and  my  two  sons,  who  made  copies  of  the  mes- 
sages ;  with  these  exceptions,  no  man  saw  anything  about  any  one 
of  them  until  they  went  into  the  hands  of  the  public  printers. 

"Xo  man  ever  said  to  me  that  the  interest  of  the  Whig  party 
required,  or  would  be  promoted  or  injured  by  my  doing  or  omit- 
ting to  do  anything.  The  most  entire  harmony  prevailed  in  the 
Council  Chamber  during  the  whole  time.  There  never  was  a 
rejection  of  a  nomination,  or  any  discussion  that  might  not  as 
well  have  been  public  as  in  the  Council  Chamber.  I  never  heard  a 
discourteous  word  or  remark  at  the  Council  Board  during  the 
seven  vears  I  was  there." 

The  following  pleasing  incident  illustrates  his  indepen- 
dence of  character,  presenting  him  to  us  as  uninfluenced 
by  the  prejudices  and  equally  by  the  preferences  of  others, 
in  all  circumstances  where  his  conscience  approved  his 
conduct. 

While  he  was  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth,  a  gentle- 
man from  Boston,  whom  he  knew  well,  visited  him  at  his 
house,  to  confer  with  him  upon  certain  political  matters. 
In  the  course  of  the  conversation,  or  rather  in  a  pause  of 
it,  the  visitor  remarked,  as  if  incidentally : 

"  Governor,  a  few  evenings   since,  among  our  friends,  a 


TRIE  UTE  FR  0  M  A  XO  THEE.  1  6  5 

matter  came  up  in  which  you  were  mentioned ;  but  as  it 
was  personal,  I  am  not  sure  that  I  do  right  to  speak  of  it." 

"  Oh,  speak  out,  speak  out,"  said  the  Governor. 

""Well,  then,  our  friends  agreed  that  for  one  who  occu- 
pies so  honorable  and  dignified  a  position  as  Governor  of 
the  State,  you  attend  too  mairy  temperance  conventions 
and  make  too  many  temperance  speeches.  The}*  think  it  is 
not  exactly  the  thing  for  a  Governor." 

To  which,  with  his  usual  sauvity,  he  replied:  "When 
3*011  see  those  friends  on  your  return,  give  them  my  best 
respects,  and  say  to  them,  that  in  my  opinion,  to  attend 
temperance  meetings  and  conventions,  and  make  temper- 
ance speeches,  is  not  only  the  most  dignified,  but  the  most 
honorable,  as  well  as  most  useful  employment  the  people  of 
Massachusetts  can  put  their  Governor  to,  and  that  while  I 
am  Governor  I  shall  continue  at  this  business." 

One  who  knew  him  well,  adds  to  these  interesting  reflec- 
tions of  the  honesty  of  his  official  life,  this  pleasing  remi- 
niscence :  — 

"  I  have  also  heard  my  friend  say  that  he  never  spent  a 
penny  to  promote  his  election  to  any  office  he  ever  held." 

Unquestionabl}"  the  public  life  of  Governor  Briggs  was 
cast  in  a  rare  mould.  Without  the  severe  assumption  that 
venality  is  a  general  characteristic  of  men  in  office  —  it  is 
certainly  true,  that  multitudes  of  them  are  not  controlled 
by  such  principles  of  honor  and  rectitude  as  those  which 
fashioned  and  adorned  the  whole  public  career  of  the  man, 
upon  whose  life  we  are  looking.  He  was  an  exception  to 
most  men  in  Congress  and  in  the  chair  of  the  Chief  Magis- 
trate, if  not  in  the  creed  of  political  ethics — yet  certainly 
in  the  practice  of  them. 

His  character  commends  itself  impressively  to  the  }7oung 

23 


2G6  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

men  of  the  nation,  who  are  aspiring,  as  he  did  not,  per- 
haps, to  its  honors  and  trusts.  They  may  indeed  seize 
them  without  his  virtue,  but  without  that  they  certainly 
will  not  wear  them  to  the  lasting  honor  of  their  names,  or 
to  the  true  benefit  of  their  generation.  There  was  through- 
out his  public  service  no  hour  and  no  act  in  which  he 
could  not  have  been  truly  described  in  the  well-known 
words  :  "  Justum  et  tenacem  propositi  virum."1 

1  A  iiian  just  and  steady  of  purpose. 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

THREE  YEARS  AT  HOME  —  RESUMES  HIS  PROFESSION  —  A  TRIAD  OF  LET- 
TERS—THE ELEPHANT  SUIT  —  A  TEDIOUS  CASE  —  ITS  FINAL  SETTLEMENT 
—  LETTERS  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER — A  REMARKABLE  DREAM  —  LETTER  TO 
ABBOTT  LAWRENCE. 

iHREE  quiet,  happy  and  prosperous  years  of  pri- 
vate life,  unburdened  with  any  official  rank  or  re- 
quirements, and  free  from  all  solicitudes,  except 
those  which  were  inseparable  from  his  domestic, 
social,  and  spiritual  relationships,  followed  the  re- 
tirement of  Governor  Briggs  from  the  chair  of  state. 

He  resumed  his  profession  of  the  law,  and  busily  brushed 
away  the  dust  which  had  settled  upon  his  books,  and,  not 
unlikely,  upon  his  brain  also ;  for  his  mind  had  been  too 
full  of  the  important  public  interests  committed  to  his  keep- 
ing to  maintain  a  very  strong  hold  upon  either  principles 
or  precedents  in  that  subtile  realm  which  is  called  the  law. 
His  innate  sense  and  his  uncompromising  reverence  of 
justice  kept  him,  indeed,  in  some  important  manner  alive 
to  the  law  as  an  exponent  of  right ;  but  its  technicalities 
and  formalities  had  to  be  renewed  in  his  memory. 

He  could  not,  however,  consent  to  do  anything  by  halves, 
and  he  carried  into  every  case  committed  to  his  hands,  a 
conscientiousness  which  was  a  better  (though  it  may  have 
been  an  unrecognized)  warrant  to  his  clients  for  its  faithful 
management,  than  any  professional  pledges  they  might  have 
exacted  from  their  advocate. 

2G7 


268  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

His  farm  and  his  broader  forensic  sphere  now  agreeably 
divided  his  services.  He  found  in  the  former  that  healthful 
delight  which  gave  a  zest  to  all  professional  labor,  and 
proved  the  happy  succedaneum  of  every  exhausting  mental 
occupation. 

Early  in  the  first  3rear  of  this  grateful  retirement,  and 
while  }'et  the  snows  of  a  Berkshire  winter  were  relentless  in 
their  usurpation  of  hillside  and  meadow,  he  indulged  him- 
self in  correspondence  with  his  friends,  to  more  than  his 
customary  extent. 

Among  his  correspondence  of  that  period  there  stands 
out  prominently  a  triad  of  related  letters,  bearing  three 
different  names,  —  one  his  own,  another  that  of  his  friend 
Amos  Lawrence,  and  the  third  that  of  James  Hamilton, 
the  well-known  English  preacher  and  writer,  whose  "Life 
in  Earnest "  has  served  to  quicken  and  freshen  so  many 
hearts  both  sides  of  the  sea.  These  letters  are  interesting, 
especially  as  reflexes  of  the  characters  they  represent. 
They  possess  a  striking  individuality.  Two  of  them  —  the 
Governor  and  the  preacher — had  never  met,  and  their  slight 
acquaintance  with  each  other  was  derived  through  their 
mutual  friend,  the  merchant  prince. 

As  a  hearty  admirer  of  the  writings  of  his  English  friend, 
Mr.  Lawrence  had  wisel}"  expended  considerable  sums  of 
money  in  reprinting  and  circulating  some  of  his  essays  and 
tracts.  For  this  favor,  which  Mr.  Hamilton  counted  an 
honor,  and  for  other  kindnesses,  he  thanks  his  American 
friend,  in  the  first  of  this  triad  of  letters. 

It  is  to  be  regretted,  perhaps,  that  no  cop}^  of  the  letter 
from  Governor  Briggs  to  Mr.  Lawrence,  which  the  latter 
transmitted  to  England,  and  which  so  gratified  his  distin- 


A    TRIAD    OF  LETTERS.  269 

guished  correspondent  there,  is  at  command  for  use  in  these 
memorials  :  — 

[I.  —  Eev.  Dr.  Hamilton  to  Amos  Lawrence.] 

42  Gower  Street,  Loxdox,  Feb.  15,  1851. 
My  dear  Sir  : 

Xo  letters  which  authorship  has  brought  to  me  ever  gave  me 
such  pleasure  as  I  received  from  yours  of  July  18,  1849,  inclosing 
one  which  Governor  Briggs  had  written  to  you.  That  strangers 
so  distinguished  should  take  such  interest  in  my  writings  and 
should  express  themselves  so  kindly  towards  myself,  overwhelmed 
me  with  a  pleasing  surprise  and  with  thankfulness  to  God  who 
had  given  me  such  favor.  I  confess,  too,  it  helped  to  make  me 
love  more  the  country  which  has  always  been  to  me  the  dearest 
next  my  own.  In  conjunction  with  some  much-prized  friendships 
which  I  have  formed  among  your  ministers,  it  would  almost  tempt 
me  to  cross  the  Atlantic.  But  I  am  so  bad  a  sailor  that  I  fear  I 
must  postpone  personal  intercourse  with  those  American  friends 
who  do  not  come  to  England,  until  we  reach  the  land  where  there 
is  no  more  sea. 

To  you  also  I  am  indebted  for  the  friendship  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Abbott  Lawrence.  Mrs.  Hamilton  and  I  feel  ashamed  of  the  kind- 
ness which  they  have  shown  to  us,  and  yet  we  are  greatly  delighted 
with  it.  No  foreign  minister  is  such  a  favorite  with  the  British 
public,  and  we  feel  it  no  small  honor  and  privilege  to  have  been  so 
cordially  received  at  the  American  embassy.  And  yet  you  will 
think  it  does  not  look  very  grateful  to  delay  writing  so  long.  But 
I  am  very  conscious  that  it  is  because  your  letter  gave  me  such 
unusual  pleasure,  that  I  have  found  it  more  difficult  to  send  an 
answer.  I  could  not  help  feeling  that  anything  I  might  say  would, 
in  importance  and  in  the  power  of  affording  gratification,  be  no 
equivalent  to  what  you  had  written  to  me.  However  feebly  ex- 
pressed, be  pleased  to  accept  my  heart-felt  thanks  for  all  the  cost 
and  trouble  you  have  incurred  in  circulating  my  publications.  It 
is  pleasant  to  me  to  think  that  your  motive  in  distributing  them 
could  not,  in  the  first  instance,  be  friendship  for  the  author;  and 
to  both  of  us  it  will  be  the  most  welcome  result,  if  they  promote, 

23* 


•J  70  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

in  any  measure,  the  cause  of  practical  Christianity.  Owing  to 
"weakness  in  the  throat  and  chest,  I  cannot  preach  so  much  as 
many  of  my  neighbors ;  and  therefore  I  feel  the  more  anxious  that 
my  tracts  should  do  something  for  the  honor  of  the  Saviour  and 
the  welfare  of  mankind. 

Accept,  too,  my  best  thanks  for  the  huge  parcel  of  reports  and 
sermons.  They  have  been  a  source  of  much  instruction.  Your 
benevolent  institutions  seem  to  me  to  be  more  purpose-like  and 
efficient  than  ours.  The  account  of  the  Perkins'  Blind  Asylum  is 
especially  striking.  # 

You  were  kind  enough  to  reprint  my  last  year's  lecture  to  young 
men.  I  could  hardly  wish  the  same  distinction  bestowed  on  its 
successor,  because  it  is  a  fragment.  I  have  some  thought  jf 
extending  it  into  a  short  exposition  of  Ecclesiastes,  which  is  a 
book  well  suited  to  the  times,  but  little  understood. 

Believe  me,  my  dear  and  kind  friend,  with  the  greatest  esteem 

and  affection, 

Yours,  most  truly, 

James  Hamilton. 

[II.  —  Amos  Lawrence  to  Hon.  G.  X.  Briggs.] 

Boston,  Mar.  18,  1851. 
My  dear  Friend  : 

You  will  see  by  the  foregoing  letter  from  Dr.  Hamilton,  that  a 
part  of  it  belongs  to  you,  and  I  accordingly  give  a  copy  of  the 
whole. 

He  is  an  extraordinary  man,  and  acting  with  mighty  power  upon 
his  own  country,  and,  I  hope,  with  considerable  power  on  this. 
The  Lecture  to  Young  Men,  delivered  the  present  year,  I  send  for 
your  examination,  and,  notwithstanding  the  Doctor's  modesty 
about  its  publication,  if  you  think  it  such  an  one  as  you  would  like 
to  scatter  with  its  predecessor,  and  will  write  a  brief  notice  com- 
mending it,  to  be  published  with  it,  and  will  allow  me  to  publish  it 
for  you,  at  my  expense,  for  gratuitous  distribution,  I  will  do  it,  and 
will  write  to  the  good  Doctor,  acknowledging  the  tract  and  asking 
him  to  send  forward  his  further  exposition.  Pray,  let  me  send 
your  note  to  him  if  you  like  this  tract  (and  some  of  our  friends 
pronounce  it  his  best);  and  do  come  and  see  me  very  soon,  —  I 


A    TRIAD    OF  LETTERS.  271 

love  old  friends  better  than  new  ones.     So  do  find  an  excuse  for 

coming.     Onr  Minister  in  England  is  spending  his  money  for  the 

honor  of  his  country  and  the  comfort  of  himself.     No  man  can  do 

the  work  better.     Have  you  written  to  him  yet? 

Love  to  Mrs.  B.  and  Harriet,  in  which  wife  joins  me. 

Your  friend, 

Amos  Lawrence. 

P.  S. — Please  say  to  Dr.  Todd  that  I  sent  his  Pilgrim  Address 
to  the  original  Pilgrim  Church  in  Southwark,  formed  in  1616,  and  I 
shall  feel  obliged  for  another  copy.  A.  L. 

[III.  —  Governor  Briggs  to  Amos  Lawrence.] 

Pittsfield,  March  31st,  1851. 
My  dear  Friend  : 

Your  kind  note  of  the  18th  inst.  came  duly  to  hand  in  a  package 
of  other  good  things,  —  Dr.  Hamilton's  lecture  to  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association  in  London  on  the  4th  of  February  last,  enti- 
tled "  Solomon  the  Prince  and  Solomon  the  Preacher,"  —  which 
was  one  of  the  best  of  all, being  amon%  them. 

Absence  from  home  and  various  other  hindrances  have  pre- 
vented an  earlier  reply.  I  cannot  tell  you  how  much  I  have  been 
charmed,  delighted,  and  instructed  by  the  reading  of  this  rich  and 
beautiful  lecture.  As  a  fellow-man  and  a  fellow- Christian,  I  feel 
under  great  obligations  to  the  eloquent  author  of  this  production 
for  his  efforts  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  the  young  men  of  his 
generation  correct  views  of  the  sacred  Scriptures,  and  the  great 
truths  which  they  inculcate.  His  remarkable  lecture  before  the 
same  association  last  year,  upon  "  The  Literary  Attractions  of  the 
Bible,"  is  eminently  calculated  to  produce  that  most  desirable 
result.  Thousands  of  young  men  in  this  country  have  read  with 
thrilling  interest  that  beautiful  address.  Its  effects  upon  them, 
and  upon  those  who  feel  their  influence,  will  be  manifest  after  its 
worthy  author  shall  have  entered  upon  his  reward  in  another  and 
happier  state  of  existence.  I  am  highly  gratified  with  the  sugges- 
tion which  you  make  in  your  note,  of  presenting  to  the  young  men 
of  our  country  "  Solomon  the  Prince  and  Solomon  the  Preacher." 
By  doing  so  you  will  Increase  the  obligation  which  your  country- 


272  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  K.   BRIGGS. 

men  and  humanity  are  already  under  to  you  for  your  numerous 
and  continued  acts  of  munificence.     I  should  be  most  happy  in  any 
way  to  be  instrumental  in  laying  before  our  young  men  this  intel 
lectual  and  moral  treasure. 

How  the  destiny  of  our  country  would  brighten,  if  the  noble  and 
truly  Christian  sentiment  uttered  by  Dr.  Hamilton  in  his  last  lec- 
ture, that  "the  saint  is  greater  than  the  sage,  and  discipleship  to  Jesus 
is  the  jAnnade  of  human  dignity  "  could  be  made  to  sink  deep  into 

the  hearts  of  the  young  men  of  these  United  States 

Sincerely  and  truly  3rour  friend, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 

One  of  the  curious  and  somewhat  unique  cases  which 
Governor  Briggs  conducted  before  the  Berkshire  bar,  was 
the  Elephant  suit.  It  created  much  interest  at  the  time. 
In  the  letter  to  his  daughter,  which  follows,  he  gives  the  out- 
lines of  this  case,  and  makes  further  details  unnecessaiy  :  — 

Pittsfield,  Nov.  — ,  1851. 
My  dear  Daughter  : 

We  have  no  new  or  startling  events  in  our  family  or  neighbor- 
hood since  my  last  epistle  to  be  recorded  in  this,  saving  and 
excepting  an  occurrence  of  some  consequence  to  me  in  a  profes- 
sional point  of  view.  You  have  probably  seen  in  the  papers  that 
the  elephant  Columbus  fell  through  the  bridge  in  South  Adams, 
and  was  so  injured  that  he  died  a  week  afterwards  in  Lenox.  His 
owner,  thinking  the  town  of  Adams  might  be  liable  to  him  for 
damages,  did  me  the  favor  to  retain  me  and  place  the  case  in  my 
hands,  with  a  pretty  handsome  retainer.  What  the  town  will  do 
about  it  remains  to  be  seen.  It  will  be  quite  an  important  matter 
to  the  town  and  owner.  The  animal  was  valued  at  fifteen  thousand 
dollars  ($15,000).  The  owner  said  he  would  not  have  taken  that 
for  him,  and  that  he  cannot  be  replaced  for  that  sum.  He  was,  I 
believe,  the  largest  in  America.  Tell  the  junior  branch  of  the 
firm  on  Bank  corner,  if  he  will  look  up  the  law  and  settle  the  ques- 
tion, whether  the  town  is  liable  for  not  having  a  bridge  strong 


LETTERS  TO   HIS  DAUGHTER.  273 

enough  to  hold  up  an  elephant  weighing  five  tons,  he  may  see  the 

elephant  for  nothing  a'most ! 

Your  affectionate  father, 

George  N.  Briggs. 

This  suit  was  as  tedious,  almost,  as  a  case  in  chancery. 
It  came  in  successive  aspects  to  the  jury  ;  and  although 
in  every  instance  the  judge  charged  the  jurors  that,  accord- 
ing to  law,  the  town  of  Adams  was  responsible  for  the 
loss,  the  juries  could  never  agree  ;  and  eventually,  after 
the  case  was  argued  before  the  Supreme  Court  in  Boston,1 
it  was  settled  by  compromise  between  the  parties. 

With  the  confinement  of  severe  indisposition,  there  came 
to  the  father's  heart  pleasant  reminiscences  of  his  early 
married  life,  and  he  writes  to  his  daughter  :  — 

Pittsfield.  Mar.  4,  1852. 
My  dear  Child  : 

You  see  I  am  able  to  report  to  you  to-day.  Except  the  rheu- 
matic trouble  in  my  legs,  I  am  very  comfortable.  "While  the  family 
were  at  dinner,  I  bundled  up  and  took  a  little  walk  on  the  piazza. 
The  fresh  air  was  sweet.  I  hope  the  next  fair  day  to  ride  out 

Thirty  years  ago  to-day.  your  mother  and  I,  and  a  liltle  daugh- 
ter, and  only  child,  lived  in  a  little  green  house  in  South  Adams.  It 
had  three  rooms,  including  the  chamber;  no  cellar,  no  wood- 
house.  I  paid  thirty  dollars  rent  for  it.  Our  means  were  limited, 
and  our  wants  very  few.  We  were  as  happy,  probably,  as  we  have 
ever  been.  About  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  we  were  delighted 
to  have  come  to  live  with  us  a  nice  little  baby  boy — we  hope  he 
will  live  with  us  forever.  Living  in  such  a  house  on  very  small 
means,  in  regard*to  property,  several  hundred  dollars  worse  than 
nothing,  yet  with  life  before  us,  with  a  daughter  and  a  son,  the 
present  was  happy,  and  the  future  bright.     A  good  Providence  has 

1  This  was  in  April,  1861.  Henry  S.  Briggs,  Esq.,  the  youngest  son  of  Governor 
Briggs,  was  conducting  the  case,  and  withdrew  from  the  court,  under  orders  to 
take  command  of  the  Allen  Guard,  in  the  Massachusetts  Eighth  Regiment. 


274  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  ERIGGS. 

made  that  future  better  and  brighter  than  we  ever  hoped.  Since 
then  he  has  added  two  to  our  number  of  children.  One  of  them, 
I  doubt  not,  is  among  the  angels  in  Heaven.  I  hope,  if  it  please 
God,  they  will  live  to  see  their  parents  gathered  to  their  fathers  in 
a  ripe  old  age,  and  in  the  triumphs  of  Christian  faith. 

Your  affectionate  father, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 

The  summer  with  its  farm  duties  and  its  perpetual  out- 
of-door  delights,  and  then  the  Fall  term  of  the  Courts,  be- 
guiled so  much  of  his  time  that  letters  are  few  again,  until 
the  eager  and  the  nipping  air  of  November  made  the  library 
more  comfortable  than  the  meadow  or  the  orchard,  when  he 
writes  thus  :  — 

Pittsfield,  7th  Nov.,  1852. 
My  dear  Daughter: 

I  suppose  by  this  time,  you  at  Lawrence  begin  to  think  that  we 
in  Pittsfield  have  forsaken  you.  I  have  been  most  of  the  time  at 
court,  except  the  time  which  was  spent  at  the  election  that  has 
resulted  so  beautifully.  In  what  is  to  come,  the  people  as  in  times 
past,  are  to  share  in  common  the  fruits  of  Government.  If  the 
election  has  resulted  beneficially  to  the  country,  we  shall  all  be 
blessed;  if  for  evil,  all  will  have  to  help  bear  the  evils.  It  is  about 
eight  o'clock.  Your  mother  and  I  are  here  in  the  library,  —  she 
with  Georgie  in  her  lap.  We  have  been  talking  about  the  time 
when  we  lived  with  a  little  girl  in  the  little  green  house,  and  con- 
trasting our  situation  then  with  that  of  our  children  now.  The 
presence  of  this  little  boy  shows  that  we  have  glided  very  far 
down  the  current  since  the  days  referred  to. 

It  is  a  most  unwelcome  reflection,  that  I  am  no  wiser  or  better, 
and  what  is  more  strange,  no  graver  than  in  those  by-gone  days. 
No  better  prepared  to  live,  no  fitter  to  die,  than  I  was.  This  with 
the  certainty  that  I  am  much  nearer  death  and  retribution,  is  a 
painful  consciousness.  A  thousand  broken  resolutions  render  it 
more  than  probable  that  I  shall  not  improve.  A  trembling  hope 
in  the  merits  and  pardoning  mercy  of  the  crucified  and  Almighty 


A   REMARKABLE  DREAM.  275 

Saviour  is  my  only  consolation  for  the  future.  Happy,  if  when  I 
pass  through  the  valley  and  the  shadow  of  death,  I  can  declare 
with  entire  confidence,  as  did  our  lovely  friend  Jane,  "  I  will  fear 
no  evil.  Thy  rod  and  thy  staff  they  comfort  me."  That  rod  and 
that  staff  the  dying  statesman,  at  Marshfield,  said  he  wanted.  I 
hope  he  found  it  and  relied  on  it.  How  beautiful  is  that  religion 
that  stoops  from  its  own  bright  Heaven,  and  offers  the  same  sup- 
port and  consolation  in  the  hour  of  need  and  extremity  to  the 
timid  maiden  and  the  man  of  giant  mind.  Without  that  rod  and 
staff,  the  one  is  just  as  helpless  and  lost  as  the  other ;  with  it,  they 
»  both  are  safe,  and  will  go  securely  through  the  dark  valley,  and 
reach  in  triumph  the  celestial  city  beyond. 
All  send  love  to  Charles  and  George.     Thanksgiving  is  coming ! 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  following  letter  describes  a  dream,  of  which  he  always 
cherished  particular  and  vivid  recollection,  appealing  so 
directly  and  so  powerfully  as  it  did  to  his  religious  nature, 
and  to  the  most  sacred  emotions  of  Ms  being :  — 

Pittsfield,  Dec.  5,  1852. 
My  dear  Daughter  : 

After  leaving  Lawrence  on  Tuesday,  I  dined  with  Mr.  Win- 
throp.  The  dinner  was  a  pleasant  affair.  Twenty-four  dined,  I 
believe,  including  Mrs.  Winthrop,  whom  I  saw  for  the  first  time. 
Mr.  Quincy,  senior,  was  there.  Mr.  "Winthrop  said  I  was  to  sit  be- 
tween Mr.  Quincy  and  Abbott  Lawrence,  and  he  thought  if  I  was 
not  satisfied  with  my  position,  I  must  be  an  unreasonable  fellow. 
I  was  very  much  delighted  to  meet  Abbott,1  and  he  "  let  on"  that 
he  was  glad  to  meet  me.  His  greeting  was  hearty  as  ever,  and  it 
seemed  as  if  it  had  not  been  long  since  we  met.  There  was  noth- 
ing strange  in  his  appearance  or  manner  that  needed  to  become 
acquainted  with.  As  we  were  both  going  to  the  Mercantile  Asso- 
ciation to  hear  Choate,  he  insisted  that  I  should  go  home  with  him 

1  Hon.  Abbott  Lawrence. 


27G  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  X.   BR1GGS. 

to  see  Mrs.  L.  and  K.  I  did  so,  and  was  very  happy  at  meeting 
both  them  and  B.  Next  to  my  own  children,  I  know  no  young 
man  in  whose  destiny  I  have  felt  so  much  interest  as  in  B.'s.  He 
goes  back  an  attache  to  the  minister  at  St.  James. 

Came  home  on  Thursday.  All  well  as  usual.  Nothing  new, 
except  my  dream  last  night :  — I  thought  I  set  off  for  the  village, 
and  when  I  entered  the  road  at  the  east  end  of  our  avenue,  I  found 
myself  standing  in  the  air,  just  above  the  tops  of  the  trees,  with 
my  face  towards  the  village.  It  was  night;  but  a  few  rays  of 
light  shot  forth  from  the  east,  of  inconceivable  brightness.  They 
struck  the  steeple  and  cross  of  the  Baptist  meeting-house,  and 
made  them  perfectly  transparent.  Retaining  their  shape,  they 
looked  as  though  they  were  composed  of  millions  of  diamonds. 
A  low  tower  at  the  right  of  that,  had  very  much  the  same  appear- 
ance. While  I  was  thus  standing  with  perfect  ease  and  composure 
in  the  air,  a  wagon-load  of  people  in  the  street  below  me,  and  a 
little  to  the  left,  stopped  and  looked  up  at  me  with  seeming  sur- 
prise. They  saw  me  distinctly,  as  the  light  from  the  east  shone 
in  my  face ;  but  they  did  not  turn  around  to  see  the  wonderful  and 
beautiful  spectacle  which  I  saw.  Soon  the  light  quietly  faded 
away,  and  darkness  came  over  the  scene.  With  perfect  quietness 
and  peace  of  mind  I  came  down  to  the  earth.  Something  said  to 
me,  "This  is  a  specimen  of  the  brightness  of l His  coming.'  "  If 
those  few  rays  of  light  shooting  from  the  east  were  a  specimen  of 
the  brightness  of  His  coming,  no  created  being  can  conceive  of  the 
flood  of  glory  that  will  fill  the  world  when  the  Son  of  God  shall 
appear  in  the  east  in  the  sight  of  an  astonished  universe. 
Affectionately,  your  father, 

George  N.  Bkiggs. 

Among  copies  of  letters  from  his  own  pen.  the  following 
is  without  date  or  address,  but  from  its  tone,  and  from  the 
frank  and  confidential  character  of  the  friendship  the  two 
had  for  each  other,  it  is  quite  certain  it  was  addressed  to 
Mr.  Abbott  Lawrence  :  — 


LETTER   TO  ABBOTT  LAWRENCE.  277 

"  Dear  L. : 

"  For  some  time  past  you  have  been  much  in  my  mind.  So  you 
shall  have  my  thoughts  on  paper.  You  may  think  that  I  had  better 
keep  them  to  myself;  but  I  know  that  there  is  not  a  particle  of 
selfishness  in  what  I  propose  to  say ;  and  as  I  am  sure  you  will 
properly  appreciate  the  motives  which  lead  me  to  say  it,  I  proceed. 
The  world  knowf  what  you  know  —  that  you  are  very  rich,  that 
wealth  is  flowing  into  your  coffers  rapidly.  What  you  will  do 
with  that  wealth  is  to  you  and  to  the  world  a  question  of  great 
consequence.  To  no  human  being  are  you  accountable  for  what 
you  will  do  with  it ;  but  to  Mm  whose  steward  you  are,  like  all 
the  rest  of  us,  you  will  have  an  account  to  give.  Your  reputa- 
tion and  fame  are  involved  in  the  decision  of  this  question.  You 
have  given  evidence  incontestable  that  you  have  no  narrow  or 
miserly  heart.  Should  you  go  on  as  you  have  begun,  and  prac- 
tice the  same  liberality  that  has  hitherto  marked  your  conduct, 
and  at  the  close  of  your  life  leave  your  large  estate  to  your 
family,  the  world  will  think  well  of  you  and  your  children  will 
thank  you.  There  is  another  course.  You  may  leave  to  your 
children  all  that  will  be  useful  or  safe  to  them, — and  by  no  means 
need  you  deal  narrowly  with  them,  for  you  have  an  excellent 
family;  but,  after  doing  that,  you  can  with  the  balance  make 
yourself  a  public  benefactor,  to  an  extent  that  no  man  in  this  coun- 
try or  in  any  other  has  ever  done.  Suppose  that  in  every  county 
in  your  own  Commonwealth,  you  establish  and  endow  a  perma- 
nent free  school  for  the  benefit  of  the  indigent  and  orphans,  to  last 
forever,  or  found  and  endow  other  charitable  or  moral  institutions 
in  or  out  of  your  own  Commonwealth,  —  what  would  be  the  effect 
of  such  a  distribution  of  your  surplus  wealth,  after  reserving  a 
munificent  provision  for  your  family?  —  I  mean  the  effect  upon 
your  happiness,  your  fame,  your  descendants,  and  the  world.  To 
see  such  things  done  under  your  own  eye,  while  living,  would  make 
you  the  happiest  man  on  earth.  It  would  make  out  your  title  as 
benefactor  of  mankind,  erect  monuments  upon  which  your  descend- 
ants, to  the  latest  generations,  would  look  with  pride  and  grati- 
tude.    Who   can  conceive  the  perennial  benefits  flowing  to  the 

beneficiaries  of  such  bounty  ?    Why,  my  dear  sir,  generation  after 
24 


278  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

generation  would  rise  up  and  call  you  blessed,  and  their  benedic- 
tions would  come  from  the  hearts  of  thousands  who  will  be  rescued 
from  ignorance  and  its  baleful  consequences  by  your  magnificent 
liberality.  You  would  live  forever  fresh  in  the  gratitude  and 
admiration  of  your  fellow-men.  Contrast  such  fame  with  that  of 
dying  the  richest  man  in  New  England,  possessing  a  liberality 
such  as  I  am  proud  to  say  belongs  to  many  men  in  your  city,  and 
leaving  the  balance  to  be  enjoyed  or  wasted  by  your  descendants, 
as  they  shall  be  wise  or  foolish. 

"  I  have,  my  dear  L.,  described  a  course  which  would  prove  you 
to  be  the  best  and  wisest  man  of  your  age,  because  the  greatest 
benefactor  of  your  age.  These  monuments  of  your  munificence 
should  be  erected  under  your  own  direction  while  living,  and  not 
be  left  to  be  done  by  others  with  your  money  after  you  can  use  it 
no  longer.  Look  at  the  folly  of  Stephen  Girard  in  this  respect. 
He  worshipped  his  mammon  while  he  lived,  and  folly  and  madness 
have  rioted  in  his  treasures  since  his  death. 

"  These  may  seem  to  you  strange  suggestions,  and  it  may  seem 
more  strange  that  they  should  be  made  in  this  manner.  There  is 
not  another  rich  man  on  earth  to  whom  they  would  be  made  by 
me.  I  know  they  will  be  received  in  the  spirit  in  which  they  are 
made.  I  should  rather  have  the  fame  which  you  have  the  power 
of  giving  yourself,  than  to  be  the  desolator  of  Europe  in  the  per- 
son of  Napoleon  Bonaparte,  or  to  sit  on  the  throne  of  the  Caesars. 

"  Sincerely  your  friend, 

"Geo.  N.  Briggs." 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 

HE  IS  APPOINTED  JUDGE  OF  THE  COURT  OF  COMMON  PLEAS  — DEATH  OF 
HIS  MOTHER-IN-LAW  —  SEVERE  ILLNESS  —  HIS  DAUGHTER'S  ACCOUNT  OF 
IT  — A  SPRING  LETTER  — A  SUMMER  LETTER  —  A  WINTER  LETTER  TO  HIS 
SON  IN  CUBA  — HIS  DAUGHTER-IN-LAW  RETURNS  AND  FINDS  NEW  LIFE 
—  A  LETTER  OF  REJOICING  FOR  HER  CONVERSION  AND  BAPTISM  — TRIB- 
UTE TO  HIS  JUDICIAL  CAREER. 

N  the  month  of  August,  1853,  he  was  appointed  by 
Governor  Clifford,  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common 
Pleas,  —  an  honor  which  gratified  both  its  recipient 
and  the  public.  Of  this  appointment  his  daughter 
says  :  — 

"  The  position  was  very  agreeable,  and  seemed  well  suited  to 
the  closing  years  of  a  life  whose  youth  and  early  manhood  had 
been  spent  amid  exciting  and  important  public  events,  and  in  the 
anxieties  and  toils  of  his  profession. 

"  He  entered  upon  these  new  responsibilities  in  a  ripened  ma- 
turity of  character  and  experience.  During  the  term  of  six  years 
that  he  held  the  office  of  judge,  there  was  little  opportunity  for 
distinction,  but  that  his  ability  was  quite  an  average  is  seen,  as  I 
am  informed,  from  the  proportion  of  his  decisions  that  were  sus- 
tained by  the  Supreme  Court,  as  compared  with  those  of  his 
associates. 

"  In  pronouncing  sentence  upon  the  convicted,  it  was  remark- 
able how  paternal  and  kind  he  invariably  was,  especially  to  the 
you ng,  mingling  admonition  with  encouragement  to  reformation, 
at  the  same  time  not  abating,  in  the  least,  the  severity  and  justice 
of  the  sentence.  I  well  remember  hearing  him  sentence  a  boy  to 
the  House  of  Correction  during  one  of  his  terms  in  Lawrence,  and 
was  strongly  reminded  of  his  expression  and  manner,  when  youth- 

279 


280  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

ful  offenders  in  his  own  family,  in  days  gone  by,  came  under  his 
rebuke  or  displeasure.  He  was  much  amused  by  the  reminiscences 
the  scene  recalled,  when  I  assured  him  I  felt  myself  the  culprit 
again,  and  listened  to  him  as  if  I  were  being  talked  to  in  the  boy's 
stead.  He  admonished  him  to  take  time,  during  his  banishment 
from  friends,  to  think  over  his  misconduct,  to  make  resolutions  to 
reform  when  again  at  liberty,  and  to  show  by  a  better  course  of 
conduct  that  he  meant  to  be  a  better  person ;  and  he  assured  him 
that  time  and  reform  would  wipe  away  the  remembrance  of  his 
error  from  others,  though  he  might  always  think  of  it  with  regret 
and  shame." 

The  death  of  his  venerable  and  honored  mother-in-law 
was  the  occasion  of  this  beautiful  letter  to  his  daughter. 
She  died  at  his  home,  where  she  had  long  lived  :  — 

Springfield,  4th  Oct.,  1854. 
My  dear  Child  : 

I  have  just  left  your  mother,  sad  and  lonely,  though  in  health 
better  than  could  be  expected  after  all  she  has  passed  through. 
The  funeral  of  the  dear  old  woman  took  place  on  Friday.  She 
was  quietly  laid  clown  by  the  side  of  her  husband,  in  the  town  that 
gave  her  birth  nearly  eighty-five  years  ago.  I  wish  you  and 
Charles  could  have  been  at  home,  and  looked  once  more  upon  that 
dear  and  venerable  face.     There  was  nothing  of  death  in  it  but  the 

coldness.     The  expression  was  one  of  peaceful  loveliness 

It  is  painful  to  realize  that  I  can  no  more  have  the  privilege  of 
caring  for  her  and  providing  for  her  wants,  and  that  I  have  not 
done  more  in  little  things  to  add  to  her  enjoyment.  As  in  most 
cases  when  our  friends  leave  us,  none  of  us  knew  how  much  we 
loved  and  revered  her  till  she  was  gone.  Though  her  sufferings 
were  extreme  she  was  patient,  peaceful,  and  lovely,  expressing 
herself  with  the  most  affecting  tenderness  to  all  who  were  about 
her.  With  your  mother,  the  scenes  of  half  a  century  crowd  upon 
and  almost  crush  her.     True  and  faithful  has  she  been  to  that 

mother.     She  will  not  lose  her  reward 

Hereafter  we  shall  occupy  grandma's  corner  and  be  old  folks. 


A   SEVERE  ILLXESS.  281 

Your  mother  has  fitted  up  grandma's  room,  and  we  have  moved 
into  it.  It  is  very  pleasant.  The  thought  that  the  good  old  woman 
is  in  heaven,  hearing  its  music,  seeing  its  beauties,  andenjoying  its 
happiness,  makes  every  thought  of  her  agreeable ;  but  we  have 
lost  the  blessed  privilege  of  providing  and  caring  for  her  any  more. 

Your  affectionate  father, 

George  N.  Briggs. 

A  brief  note  to  his  daughter,  at  Lawrence,  is  all  the  trace 
of  him  which  his  correspondence  affords  in  the  spring  of 
1854:  — 

Pittsfield,  March  7,  1854. 
My  dear  Daughter  : 

All  well.     Sleighing  melting  away Poor  old  Uncle 

P — ly  died  Saturday  morning,  and  was  buried  Sabbath  afternoon. 
He  was  poor  and  weak  and  of  little  account  here,  but  I  have  no 
doubt  the  shining  ones  were  waiting  for  him  on  the  other  side  of 
the  river,  and  joyfully  took  his  spirit  to  the  celestial  city.  His 
funeral  was  well  attended,  but  not  by  many  of  the  "refined."  I 
never  heard  Dr.  T.  more  interesting  at  a  funeral,  though  I  think 
funeral  occasions  are  the  places  where  he  appears  best.  He  said 
the  Saviour  preached  to  the  poor 

Tell  George  I  thank  him  for  the   "Household  of  Sir  Thomas 

More."    Hove  Meg. 

Your  loving  Father. 

Before  the  sunmier  of  this  year  was  fairly  throned  upon 
the  Berkshire  hills,  the  hand  of  pain  was  laid  heavily  upon 
him.  He  was  prostrated  by  a  severe  attack  of  inflammatory 
rheumatism.  His  faithful  daughter  was  at  his  side  in  this 
time  of  trouble,  and  her  hand  draws  the  curtain  which  must 
otherwise  have  hidden  from  the  public  eye  the  clouded 
physical  life  of  this  noble  sufferer,  which  was  yet  irradiated 
by  the  exceedingly  pure  light  of  the  life  within  —  the  "  life 
hid  with  Christ  in  God."     She  says,  — 

24* 


282  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BR1GGS. 

"This  illness  produced  a  marked  change  in  his  appearance. 
Though  not  made  infirm  or  lame,  which  is  quite  remarkable  after 
such  utter  helplessness,  he  never  regained  the  look  of  ruddy  youth- 
fulness  and  firmness  which  he  kept  so  wonderfully  till  late  in  life ; 
and  he  was  long  in  creeping  up  to  his  average  health  and  elasticity. 
Many  weeks  of  uninterrupted  intimacy  with  my  father  during  this 
illness,  gave  me  new  impressions  of  his  character. 

"Always  cherishing  for  him  filial  affection  and  respect,  we  had 
yet  never  assumed  any  relation  but  that  of  father  and  daughter. 
The  ministry  and  waiting  with  him  in  his  sick-chamber  had  made 
us  acquainted  with  each  other.  We.  felt  that  we  had  become 
friends.  We  often  discussed  opinions  and  events  on  terms  of 
equality  that  surprised  us  when  we  were  separated.  It  is  true,  I 
never  so  honored  and  loved  him,  and  never  felt  so  intimately 
acquainted  with  him,  as  during  this  reunion.  I  wish  it  were  pos- 
sible to  reproduce  some  of  the  incidents  of  this  period.  Though 
very  desponding  while  suffering,  he  was  patient  and  uncomplain- 
ing ;  and  when  the  hours  of  repose  and  delicious  ease  and  peace 
followed  pain  and  restlessness,  when  he  began  to  regain  the 
power  of  motion,  his  tongue  was  freed  in  proportion  as  his  spirits 
rose.  Oh,  the  long  talks,  and  reminiscences  of  early  life  and  man- 
hood, the  anecdotes  and  sketches  of  public  and  social  scenes  at 
home  and  abroad !  I  thought,  then,  if  it  were  possible,  they  should 
be  preserved ;  but  alas,  that  they  are  forever  lost ! 

'•  One  wakeful  night  I  particularly  remember,  after  watchers  had 
ceased  to  be  required,  and  little  attention  was  needed,  as  usual  I 
was  resting  in  his  room  upon  a  lounge.  He  went  from  one  inci- 
dent and  anecdote  to  another  in  a  certain  portion  of  his  life,  till 
we  were  tired  out  with  laughing,  and  I  confess  I  feared  the  effect 
of  so  much  exhilaration  upon  him.  He  seemed  so  rejuvenated  in 
spirit,  after  his  sufferings,  that  the  overflow  of  playfulness  and  fun 
was  but  the  natural  outlet  of  his  happiness. 

"  The  profound  gratitude  which  he  felt  and  expressed  during  this 
convalescence,  and,  indeed,  when  he  was  suffering  most,  for  the 
countless  blessings  mingled  with  his  affliction,  was  very  marked. 
One  of  the  first  times  he  was  able  to  sit  up,  after  being  lifted  into 
his  chair  and  drawn  to  the  window,  when  he  looked  out  upon  the 


SEVERE  ILLXESS.  283 

light  and  glory  of  the  scene  before  him,  he  raised  his  full  blue  eyes, 
filled  with  reverence  and  fervor,  to  heaven,  and  said :  '  Can  it  be 
that  I  do  not  love  Him  ! '  As  his  letters  show,  he  was  very  self- 
depreciating,  and  ever  had  many  misgivings  as  to  his  own  accept- 
ance in  the  sight  of  God,  when  he  contemplated  his  own  imper- 
fections in  contrast  with  the  spotless  holiness  of  those  who  dwell 
in  heaven.  On  one  occasion,  he  had  been  considering  the  evi- 
dences he  saw  of  his  being  a  true  child  of  God,  —  of  having  been 
'  born  again,' —  and  seemed  almost  overwhelmed  with  doubt,  when, 
bursting  into  tears,  he  said,  '  If  I  know  anything,  I  know  I  love 
Christians.' 

"  On  one  occasion,  it  became  necessary  to  call  in  from  his  work 
the  hired  man,  to  assist  in  raising  him,  in  order  to  arrange  his 
pillows.  He  came  into  the  chamber  directly  from  his  work,  look- 
ing so  brawny  and  healthful  and  strong,  bringing  the  air  and 
energy  of  the  working-man  into  the  quiet  and  hush  of  the  sick- 
room—  almost  shocking,  though  it  charmed  the  helpless  invalid, 
who  lay  like  an  infant  upon  the  bed.  William,  with  instinctive 
ease  and  gentleness,  raised  the  weary  shoulders  and  replaced  the 
sick  man  in  most  sweet  rest, — and  then,  standing  a  moment  and 
looking  at  him  with  real  pity,  the  bronzed  face  bent  over  the  white 
pillow  and  kissed  the  white  forehead  so  reverently  and  tenderly, 
that  we  wept  like  children.  It  was  one  of  those  impulses  which 
honor  human  nature.  Father  asked  him  to  stay  a  moment  as  he 
was  retiring,  and  presently  asked,  '  William,  are  you  a  Christian  ? ' 
1 1  am  an  unworthy  member  of 's  church.'  '  Then,  if  a  Chris- 
tian, you  are  rich,  William.'  After  a  few  words,  he  then  repeated, 
in  tones  and  expressions  which  were  perfectly  melting,  the  Scrip- 
ture, '  Come  unto  me  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I 
will  give  you  rest :  take  my  yoke  upon  you  and  learn  of  me,  for 
my  yoke  is  easy  and  my  burden  light.' 

"  One  day,  after  his  hands  had  been  powerless  for  a  long  while, 
he  found  himself  able  to  lift  his  right  hand  from  the  wrist,  and. 
turning  it  languidly,  he  looked  at  its  movements,  as  if  gratified 
with  returning  power  over  it,  and  said,  '  It  has  never  been  raised 
against  a  human  being.' 

When  sufficiently  recovered  to  see  his  friends,  in  the  library. 


'a' 
n 


284  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

one  day  Mr.  Choate,  who  was  staying  in  Lenox,  drove  up  to  see 
him.  The  moment  they  met,  my  father's  quick  eye  read  the  look 
of  surprise  and  pain  which  the  great  alteration  in  his  appearance 
instantly  called  up  on  the  face  of  his  friend.  The  look  was  quickly 
followed  by  an  illumination  of  Mr.  Choate*s  wonderfully  shadowed 
and  gloomy  countenance,  and  a  most  inspiring  salutation,  with  the 
cordial  greeting,  '  How  well  you  are  looking ! '  We  who  saw  this 
meeting,  and  remembered  the  'alarms'  that  had  shaken  them  when 
they  encountered  the  pestilence,  were  much  entertained  with  a 
scene  so  characteristic.  Afte»  Mr.  Choate  took  leave,  my  father, 
with  the  melancholy  and  pleasure  with  which  one  faltering  with 
bodily  weakness  encounters  the  freedom  and  elasticity  of  health, 
said,  '  How  splendidly  he  looked ! '  —  as  he  really  did ;  for  the  moun- 
tains and  pure  air  of  Berkshire  had  vitalized  him ;  and  he  never 
seemed  in  more  superb  tone  than  on  that  day.  My  impression  is 
they  never  met  after." 

The  date  of  the  next  letter  is  six  months  later,  and  just 
on  the  verge  of  that  lovely  season  when  "the  time  of  the 
singing  of  birds  is  come,  and  the  voice  of  the  turtle  is 
heard  in  the  land."  Sugaring  is  a  part  of  the  April  work 
of  those  who  live  in  maple  groves  ;  and  there  is  playful 
allusion  to  this  rural  process  and  to  other  very  country- 
like topics :  — 

Pittsfield,  April  22,  1855. 
My  dear  Child  : 

Since  my  return,  a  week  ago,  your  mother  has  been 

quite  well;  though  when  I  came,  she  was  nearly  "sugared  off." 
The  sap  has  since  been  boiled  out  of  the  house.  Henry  got  a 
quantum-suff.  without  making  much  sugar.  All  glad  sap  is  done 
running.  We  have  two  calves,  though  I  sold  the  old  cow's 
daughter  a  week  ago ;  we  could  not  raise  it.  Lots  of  milk :  look 
out  for  butter  about  these  days.  Turkeys  run  away  dreadfully. 
Hens  lay  lots ;  fifteen  chickens  in  two  broods ;  occasionally  we 
have  a  mammoth  great  egg.  and  then  a  mammoth  little  one. 


A    SUMMER  LETTER.  285 

Attending  court  in  Springfield,  he  writes  to  Lawrence  :  — 

Springfield,  6th  June,  1855. 
My  dear  Daughter  : 

The  heavenly  weather,  after  this  most  refreshing 

rain,  I  suppose  you  have  in  Lawrence  as  well  as  we  here.  Our 
little  place  at  home  never  looked  more  charming  than  when  I  left 
on  Monday  morning.  If  you  could  see  my  acre-and-a-half  of 
wheat,  I  guess  you  would  think  flour  will  fall  soon.  Henry's  gar- 
den looks  finely.  The  good  pear-tree  promises  much  fruit.  The 
corn  looks  well,  and  the  pastures  and  meadows,  are  clad  in  rich 
green.  I  only  regret  that  I  cannot  be  there  to  enjoy  it  all,  and 
more  yet  that  you  and  Charles  are  not  on,  and  owning  the  Merriam 
farm,1  taking  comfort  and  getting  health.  I  am  having  a  pleasant 
time  here,  and  am  staying  at  the  "  Massasoit."    The  night  before 

last  I  was  sitting  in  the  parlor,  talking  with ,  and  in  the  other 

part  of  the  room  was  a  party  from  Boston,  -very  respectable,  and, 
as  the  sequel  shows,  very  sensible.  Soon  after  they  left  the  parlor 
to  go  to  their  apartments  I  followed,  and,  just  as  I  came  up  nearly 
to  them  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs,  the  gentleman  remarked,  "  He 
was  one  of  the  best  Governors  that  Massachusetts  ever  had."  At 
that  moment  he  saw  me,  and  the  conversation  suddenly  ceased. 
Now,  I  was  vain  enough  to  suppose  that  the  remark  applied  to  us; 
and  I  certainly  felt  more  gratified  than  I  should  to  have  heard  him 
say,  "  He  was  a  scaUwag  of  a  Governor."  To  deserve  the  good 
opinion  of  my  fellow-men,  I  am  willing  to  confess,  has  with  me, 
all  my  life,  been  a  strong  desire;  but  to  have  accomplished  so 
little  to  entitle  me  to  their  good  opinion,  is  a  matter  of  deep  regret. 
There  is  one  thing,  however,  so  infinitely  more  important  than  the 
good  opinion  of  all  the  world,  that  if  through  abounding  mercy  I 
can  secure  it,  all  else  sinks  into  nothing  in  comparison, — that  is, 
at  last  to  hear  those  words  of  eternal  blessedness  and  glory  from 
the  Judge  who  sitteth  upon  the  throne  of  the  universe :  "  Well 
done,  good  and  faithful  servant."    Oh !  will  these  ears  hear  those 

1  An  adjoining  property,  just  nearer  the  village. 


286  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

words  ?    That  they  may  be  addressed  to  me  and  all  the  dear  ones 
I  love,  is  the  great  desire  of  my  heart,  and  my  daily  prayer. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

George  N.  Briggs. 

Early  in  the  winter  of  1856  his  eldest  son,  who  was 
recently  married,  took  his  lovely  young  bride  to  the  far 
South,  hoping  in  the  genial  climate  of  Key  West,  or  of 
Cuba,  to  find  that  balm  which  should  check  the  work  of 
disease  in  her  delicate  and  fragile  frame.  The  receipt  of  a 
letter  from  his  son,  with  allusions  to  soft  airs  and  bright 
verdure  and  magnificent  bloom,  suggested  to  him  strange 
contrasts  with  the  temperatures  and  aspects  around  him. 
He  replies  to  his  son's  letter  from  Lenox,  where,  in  the  very 
heart  of  winter,  he  was  holding  court.  His  reminiscences 
of  that  severe  winter  have  special  interest  for  the  biogra- 
pher, writing  at  this  moment  in  the  very  heart  of  a  Berk- 
shire winter,  and  with  stinging  recollections,  not  yet  a 
week  old,  of  a  temperature,  not,  indeed,  quite  equal  to  that 
of  1857,  but  more  than  twenty  below  zero  :  — 

Lenox,  Jan.  57,  1857. 
My  dear  Son  : 

Henry  came  down  to-day,  and  brought  your  last  letter,  which 
gave  me  great  pleasure.  The  weather  for  the  past  ten  days  has 
been  without  a  precedent  in  this  latitude.  On  Saturday,  at  home, 
at  7  a.  M.,  the  mercury  stood  at  thirty  degrees  below  zero!  Dr. 
Kane's  arctic  experiences  have  not  much  to  brag  of.  Ten  degrees 
below  is  not  regarded  as  worth  an  extra  garment ;  but  this  fellow, 
that  goes  down  to  thirty,  puts  his  cold  fingers  upon  the  vegetables 
in  many  cellars,  where  he  has  not  been  in  the  habit  of  intruding. 
What  a  contrast  this  state  of  things  with  the  mild,  smiling,  roseate 
condition  of  affairs  in  which  you  and  Nellie  and  Cousin  M.  are 
regaling  yourselves.  You  are  considerably  troubled  with  northers, 
you  say.     I  wish  we  could  have  a  southern  breath  from  your  far-off 


HIS  DAUGHTER  RETURXS  AXD  FIXDS  NEW  LIFE.      287 

island  upon  us  for  a  few  days.  A  few  weeks,  however,  will  set  it 
all  right,  and  cause  beauty  and  fragrance  and  joy  to  smile  where 
now  snow  and  ice  and  chills  prevail. 

Nothing  new  in  these  Greenland  regions.  The  religious  interest 
continues  in  Pittsfield.  Poor  old  Uncle  Tom,  of  the  cemetery- 
gate,  has  moved  into  the  cemetery  grounds,  and  laid  down  to  sleep 
after  about  a  century  of  toil  outside.  He  died  last  Saturday  morn- 
ing. He  is  believed  to  be  one  of  the  subjects  of  the  revival.  How 
amazing  that  mercy  which,  after  a  hundred  years  of  ignorance, 
and  in  disregard  from  his  fellow-men,  finds  the  aged  sinner,  par-' 
dons  him,  and  takes  him  up  to  wear  one  of  those  crowns  of  right- 
eousness which  the  Saviour  has  in  reserve  for  those  who  love  his 
appearing 

Tell  Nelly  she  must  be  resolute  and  active,  as  though  she  were 
well,  and  as  prudent  and  careful  as  if  she  were  an  invalid.  I  hope 
cousin  Mary  will  not  think  of  joining  Walker  in  his  present  for- 
tunes. I  should  much  prefer  to  see  her  joined  to  a  medical  gentle- 
man from  the  border  of  a  northern  lake.  We  think  and  talk  much 
of  you,  and  hope  by  the  blessing  of  God,  to  meet  you  when  the 
beauties  of  your  climate  shall  be  spread  over  our  mountains  and 

valleys  again. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 

With  the  summer  the  invalid  daughter-in-law  came  back, 
refreshed  and  somewhat  invigorated,  but  with  a  hold  upon 
life  scarcely  more  assuring  to  those  who  loved  her  than 
when  she  went  away.  Before  the  next  winter  spread  its 
white  robes  over  the  hills  and  vales,  she  had  found,  even 
amid  the  weakness  and  fadingr  beauty  of  this  life,  a  new 
and  wonderful  life  —  the  life  of  faith  in  the  Son  of  God. 

The  glad,  grateful  father  thus  acknowledges  his  son's 
letter,  communicating  the  tidings  of  her  baptism  and  ad- 
mission to  the  church  :  — 

Worcester,  Dec.  22,  1857. 
My  dear  Son  : 

We  received  and  read  your  letter  of  yesterday  with  equal  sur- 


2S8  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

prise  and  pleasure.  We  rejoice  greatly  to  learn  that  Nelly  has  put 
on  Christ  by  following  Him  in  baptism,  and  thus  obeying  His  com- 
mand. Having  taken  the  yoke  of  the  Saviour,  I  have  no  doubt 
she  will  find  it  easy  and  delightful  to  bear,  and  she  will  find  rest  to 
her  soul.  Those  who  learn  of  Him  will  never  be  disappointed,  but 
will  find  fulness  of  joy.  I  am  satisfied  that  no  one  can  know  the 
calm  and  holy  joy  experienced  by  those  who  thus  obey  and  follow 
the  Saviour  but  those  who  do  it. 

I  am  sure  Nelly  would  bear  her  testimony  to  the  truth  of  this 
assertion.  I  hope  she  will  have  the  constant  presence  of  the 
Master,  and  .that  her  path  will  shine  brighter  and  brighter.  The 
good  Shepherd  has  promised  to  gather  the  lambs  in  his  arms,  and 
to  carry  them  in  his  bosom.  Not  one  of  his  thousand  blessed 
promises  has  ever  failed.  Your  mother  and  I  feel  a  new  debt  of 
gratitude  to  our  Father  in  Heaven,  that  another  member  of  our 
dear  family-band  has  taken  a  place  in  the  church  of  Christ,  and 
enrolled  her  name  among  His  professed  followers.  May  she  adorn 
that  profession  more  than  any  of  us  have  done.  Though  the 
youngest,  may  she  be  an  example  to  the  gray-headed  ones.  The 
greatest  happiness  I  could  hope  to  enjoy  on  earth,  would  be  to 
have  the  assurance  that  every  member  of  our  family  was  a  sincere 
and  faithful  follower  of  Jesus. 

"  That  soon  or  late  we  reach  that  coast, 

O'er  life's  rough  ocean  driven, 
We  should  rejoice  no  wanderer  lost  — 

A  family  in  Heaven." 

I  am  sure  the  news  that  dear  Nelly  had  been  entirely  restored  to 
health,  would  not  have  given  me  the  satisfaction  that  I  realized 
from  the  announcement  of  your  letter.  She  might  have  had  health 
of  body,  and  her  soul  been  left  out  of  the  ark  of  safety.  Now  I 
hope  she  has  entered  that  ark,  and  is  prepared  for  good  or  ill- 
health  ;  for  life  or  death.  I  wish  we  might  have  witnessed  the 
solemn  ceremony.  We  send  love  to  you  and  Nelly,  Charles  and 
Harriet. 

All'ectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Cuiggs. 


TRIBUTE   TO  HIS  JUDICIAL   CAREER.  289 

His  judicial  career  is  thus  graphically  and  faithfully  de- 
picted by  the  hand  of  one !  who  not  only  knew  him  inti- 
mately, but  who  also  had,  under  a  reorganization  of  the 
judiciary  of  Massachusetts,  personal  experience  of  the 
duties  and  responsibilities  of  the  same  position.  It  will 
appropriately  close  this  chapter,  devoted  to  his  life  as  a 
judge : — 

"  Soon  after  the  completion  of  his  duties  as  a  member  of  the 
Constitutional  Convention  of  1853,  Mr.  Briggs  was  appointed  a 
Justice  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas.  He  held  his  seat  upon 
the  Bench  during  the  existence  of  that  Court,  a  period  of  about 
six  y ears. 

"  Those  who  were  intimately  acquainted  with  him  during  that 
part  of  his  professional  life  in  which  he  gave  his  time  entirely  to 
legal  practice,  were  impressed  with  the  belief  that  he  possessed, 
in  a  remarkable  degree,  some  of  the  most  essential  qualities  of  a 
judge.  His  quick  and  clear  apprehensions  of  the  facts  of  a  case, 
his  accurate  recollections  and  statements  of  the  evidence  in  his 
arguments  to  the  jury ;  his  fairness  in  giving  to  his  opponents  the 
benefit  of  all  the  testimony  bearing  in  their  favor ;  his  ability  to 
perceive  the  real  points  upon  which  his  case  must  turn,  in  the 
light  of  the  legal  principles  applicable  to  the  facts ;  his  candor  in 
waiving  advantages  merely  technical,  led  his  friends  to  believe, 
that  notwithstanding  his  skill  and  eloquence  as  an  advocate,  his 
true  place  would  eventually  be  found  upon  the  Bench. 

"  But  after  his  election  to  Congress,  and  during  the  twelve  years 
of  his  Congressional  career,  and  the  seven  years  succeeding  them, 
in  which  he  was  Governor  of  Massachusetts,  he  was  considered  as 
having  passed  from  the  law  into  the  arena  of  political  employment, 
and  it  was  hardly  expected  that  he  would  return  to  his  profession, 
either  as  an  advocate  or  as  a  Judge.  Although,  while  a  Repre- 
sentative in  Congress,  he  continued  his  professional  practice  dur- 
ing the  intervals  between  the  sessions,  he  entirely  relinquished  it 
upon  his  first  election  as  Governor.    He  resumed  it  again,  after 

l  Hon.  Julius  Rockwell. 
25 


290  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

voluntarily  retiring  from  political  employments,  and  thus  gave 
practical  evidence  of  the  sincerity  of  his  frequent  expressions  of 
his  respect  and  love  for  the  noble  profession  in  which  he  had  laid 
the  foundation  of  his  reputation,  and  from  which  he  had  been  re- 
moved to  the  high  political  stations,  where  he  had  perfected  that 
reputation,  and  made  it  a  part  of  the  history  of  the  State,  and  of 
the  nation. 

"After  Mr.  Briggs  appeared  again  in  the  courts,  he  exhibited 
the  same  qualities  which  had  characterized  his  early  professional 
life,  the  same  ready  appreciation  of  the  facts  of  a  case,  the  same 
clear  and  accurate  recollections  and  statements  of  the  evidence, 
the  same  courteous  and  generous  treatment  of  his  opponents,  and 
the  same  power  to  seize  upon  the  strong  and  real  points  of  the 

case. 

"His  political  pursuits  had  drawn  neither  his  affections  nor  his 
attentions  away  from  the  principles  of  the  legal  profession,  but 
had  furnished  him  with  many  opportunities  for  their  application. 
Yet  he  was  justly  aware  that  the  law  is  jealous  of  its  votaries, 
demanding  their  exclusive  attention,  and  slow  to  pardon  the  di- 
version of  any  of  the  best  years  of  life  from  legal  studies.  Upon 
his  return  to  the  practice  of  the  profession,  he  employed  much  of 
his  time  in  the  perusal  of  the  best  treatises,  and  of  judicial  reports. 
With  unaffected  diffidence,  yet  sustained  by  the  confidence  of  pro- 
fessional friends,  he  entered  upon  his  judicial  duties.  In  this 
sphere,  he  sustained  and  increased  his  general  reputation  in  this 
Commonwealth.  No  party,  no  counsellor  at  law,  no  juror  ever 
doubted  his  perfect  fairness  and  impartiality  in  the  trial  of  cases, 
in  his  rulings  upon  questions  of  law.  in  his  instructions  to  the 
jury,  in  his  presentations  of  contested  questions  to  the  ultimate 
tribunal  for  revision  and  final  decision.  It  is  confidently  believed, 
that  the  profession  throughout  the  State  were  satisfied  that  the 
impressions  of  his  personal  associates  in  his  early  professional 
career  were  correct. 

"  Mr.  Briggs,  as  a  lawyer  and  as  a  judge,  may  safely  be  pre- 
sented as  in  the  most  essential  particulars,  a  model  to  young  men. 
While  at  the  bar,  he  was  kind  and  courteous  to  his  brethren  of  the 
profession,  and  to  the  Court.     While  on  the  Bench,  he  was  affable 


TRIBUTE   TO   EIS  JUDICIAL    CAREER.  291 

and  courteous  in  his  demeanor  to  the  members  of  the  bar,  old  and 
young,  experienced  and  inexperienced. 

"  During  the  intermissions  of  professional  duty,  he  was  the 
most  agreeable  companion  that  could  be  found.  Many,  very  many 
in  the  various  counties  of  the  State  will  recollect,  with  unalloyed 
pleasure,  those  evenings  of  pleasant  and  instructive  conversation, 
during  the  terms  of  court,  which  they  were  permitted  to  enjoy 
with  Judge  Briggs. 

"  The  Court  of  Common  Pleas  had  jurisdiction  not  only  of  civil 
actions,  but  also  of  criminal  offences.  In  this  part  of  his  duty, 
the  qualities  of  mind  and  heart,  which  characterized  Judge  Briggs, 
in  all  the  periods  of  his  life,  were  often  exhibited  in  a  most  strik- 
ing manner.  His  generous  sympathies  were  never  forgotten,  even 
in  the  stern  discharge  of  his  official  duty,  in  passing  sentence  upon 
convicted  criminals.  He  remembered  always,  that  the  most  har- 
dened criminal  might  be  susceptible  to  kind  and  Christian  sympa- 
thy and  advice,  and  that  young  offenders  might  be  encouraged  to 
reformation.  Many  instances  are  remembered,  when  the  Christian 
judge  accompanied  the  inevitable  sentence  of  the  law  with  kind 
words  and  advice.  His  manner  on  these  occasions  will  long  be 
remembered  by  those  who  witnessed  them.  His  countenance,  the 
tones  of  his  voice,  and  his  whole  manner  were  like  those  of  a 
father  reproving  and  advising  an  erring  child ;  and  in  some  in- 
stances there  is  reason  to  believe,  these  unpremeditated  and  heart- 
felt addresses  had  an  influence  for  great  good  upon  those  to  whom 
they  were  made." 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 


FIVE  YEARS  ON  THE  BENCH  — CHANGE  OF  THE  JUDICIARY  —  HIS  OFFICE  VA- 
CATED—  RETIREMENT  FROM  PUBLIC  SERVICE  —  MORAL  BEAUTY  OF  HIS 
PRIVATE  LIFE  — HIS  CHRISTIAN  AND  PHILANTHROPIC  CHARACTER  — HIS 
TEMPERANCE  EFFORTS  — THE  TEMPERANCE  REFORM  — HIS  EFFORTS  IN 
THE  CAUSE  —  FLESHING  HIS  SWORD  FOR  THE  FIRST  —  TOBACCO  AND 
SNUFF  RENOUNCED  —  A  RETROSPECTIVE  GLANCE  INTO  HIS  CONGRESSION- 
AL LIFE  —  A  MELANCHOLY  INCIDENT  —  ANOTHER  —  THE  TOTAL  ABSTI- 
NENCE STANDARD  SET  UP  — ANECDOTE  OF  ELDER  LELAND  — NATIONAL 
TEMPERANCE  CONVENTION  AT  SARATOGA —  HIS   EFFECTIVE  ARGUMENTS. 


'OR  a  period  of  five  years  the  beloved  ex-Governor 
of  Massachusetts  had  worn  the  judicial  robes  with 
the  same  singie-mindedness  and  unfeigned  love  of 
justice  which  characterized  all  his  life,  whether  pub- 
lic or  private.  Without  intentional,  and  without 
indeed  real  disparagement  to  others  who  have  worthily  ad- 
ministered the  decisions  of  the  law  in  this  Commonwealth, 
since  his  retirement  from  the  Bench,  it  is  only  just  to  say 
that  the  State  was  the  loser  by  the  act  which  removed  him 
from  the  Bench. 

In  1858,  under  the  administration  of  Governor  Banks,  a 
great  and  radical  change  in  the  judiciary  of  Massachusetts 
was  effected.  The  Court  of  Common  Pleas  was  abolished, 
and  the  Superior  Court  organized  in  its  stead.  Whatever 
advantage  was  gained  by  this  change,  much  was  lost  in 
the  needless  removal  with  it  of  a  bench  of  efficient  and 
honored  judges,  not  one  of  whom  was  appointed  to  the  new 
court,  although  its  functions  and  jurisdiction  were  almost 
identical  with  those  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas. 

292 


MORAL   BEAUTY  OF  HIS   PRIVATE  LIFE.  293 

It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  this  sudden  stroke  fell 
upon  Judge  Briggs  without  the  effect  of  disturbance  and 
annoyance.  That  he  bore  these  without  complaint,  is  enough 
to  be  said  in  his  praise.  He  did  feel  the  blow,  but  prob- 
ably less  than  others  felt  it  for  him,  and  quite  as  little, 
perhaps  not  so  much,  for  himself  as  he  did  for  his  senior 
associate,  Chief  Justice  Mellen,  whose  removal  from  a 
place  he  so  greatly  honored,  was  a  real  grief  to  his  friend. 

The  end  of  his  judicial  service  was  the  end,  also,  of  his 
public  life,  except  in  those  aspects  of  it  which  were  purely 
philanthropic.  At  the  mature  age  of  sixty-four,  and  while 
his  natural  strength  was  not  abated,  and  the  force  of  his 
strong  mind  not  impaired,  he  finished  his  work  for  the 
Commonwealth,  which  had  honored  him  for  a  quarter  of  a 
century,  and  which  he  had,  for  all  that  period,  honored  in 
return,  by  unsullied  patriotism,  by  unswerving  fealty  to 
her  interests,  and  bv  ungrudging  toils  for  her  advantage. 

/  «•  CD  CD  CD  CD 

He  was  now  and  henceforward  to  work  for  her  in  less  con- 
spicuous places,  and  upon  less  public  arenas  than  those  he 
had  occupied.  No  one  who  knew  him,  no  one  who  has 
formed  a  just  estimate  of  his  unselfish  character,  will  ques- 
tion for  a  moment,  that  it  was  the  sphere  only  which  was 
changed,  not  the  man,  not  his  motive,  not  the  measure  of 
his  zeal. 

His  life  became,  indeed,  richer  from  the  day  of  his  re- 
tirement from  all  public  office,  in  those  characteristics  and 
products  which  most  embellish  character.  He  cultivated 
thenceforward,  with  greater  assiduity,  resulting  from  his 
greater  leisure,  the  graces  and  forces  alike  of  Christian 
benevolence  and  labor.  Never  lacking  in  these  through  all 
his  service  as  a  statesman,  as  a  Chief  Magistrate,  as  * 
Judge,  he  accumulated  them  grandly  in  his  undistinguished 

25* 


294  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

guise  as  a  private  citizen.  To  this  position  he  was  scarcely 
permitted,  perhaps,  in  one  sense,  to  recede  from  the  public 
gaze,  which  followed  him  eagerly,  respectfully,  lovingly, 
into  the  beautiful  fastnesses  of  the  Berkshire  hills,  and 
which,  when  he  was  drawn  out  from  his  farm  and  his  vil- 
lage quiet,  to  the  platforms  of  great  moral  and  religious 
societies,  rested  upon  him  with  admiring  earnestness. 

To  preserve  unity  in  these  memorials,  the  biographer  has 
hitherto  kept  his  public  life  in  view,  almost  to  the  exclu- 
sion of  those  accessorv  labors  which  were  not  official,  and 
which  were  strictly  incidental  to  his  position.  All  through 
his  Congressional  career,  and  no  less  comprehensively  in 
the  terms  of  his  magistracy  and  judicial  service,  he  did  a 
vast  amount  of  work  aside  from  his  public  duty,  and  to 
this  work  the  Christian  reader  will  assign  a  measure  of  im- 
portance  and  a  meed  of  honor,  greater  than  that  with  which 
he  will  invest  the  official  services  already  reviewed. 

It  is  the  crowning  excellence,  the  highest  glory  of  the 
life  and  memory  of  Governor  Briggs,  that  he  was,  in  the 
fullest  meaning  of  the  lofty  phrase,  a  Christian  patriot  and 
philanthropist. 

His  religion  vitalized  his  patriotism,  and  controlled  his 
philanthropy.  He  might  have  been  a  patriot  and  a  philan-' 
thropist  without  being  a  Christian,  but  the  difference  be- 
tween his  life-work  and  its  results  in  that  case,  and  these 
as  they  now  appear,  would  be  so  great,  that  the  most 
superficial  glance  would  perceive  it.  As  they  are,  they  are 
most  beautiful,  most  abiding,  most  radiant  in  their  heaven- 
ward aspect ;  as  they  would  have  been  without  Christian 
love  and  faith  to  direct  and  energize  them — they  would  have 
£ad  but  one  side,  bright,  but  evanescent,  fair,  but  passing 
away.     As  it  is,  they  are  treasures  and  memories  for  the 


HIS   TEMPERANCE  EFFORTS.  205 

home  altar,  and  for  the  church  altar  —  when  they  might 
have  been  commemorated  only  in  the  secular  annals  of  the 
State  and  the  nation.  They  have  now  a  double  applause  — 
the  acclamations  of  a  grateful  Commonwealth,  and  the 
more  enduring  affection  of  a  Christian  community  ;  of  which 
if  only  one  could  be  secured,  the  latter  is  immeasurably  to 
be  preferred. 

The  earnestness  with  which  Governor  Brisks  advocated 
the  cause  of  temperance,  makes  his  labors  in  that  depart- 
ment of  philanthropic  service  worthy  of  special  review. 
These  labors  were  indeed  contemporaneous  with  other 
works  of  Christian  charity,  and  in  the  lives  of  common  men 
would  never  perhaps  bear  isolation  without  disadvantage. 
But  in  his  case  they  will  not  be  justly  estimated  without  it. 

He  was  closely  identified  with  that  great  moral  move- 
ment against  the  curse  of  drunkenness,  which  marks  the 
second  quarter  of  the  passing  century,  and  which  in  the 
grand  proportions  to  which  it  soared,  and  still  more  in  the 
wonderful  results  it  effected,  will  be  memorable  in  history 
as  a  mighty  reformation. 

It  began  humbly,  as  such  moral  movements  generally  do. 
The  current  which  eventually  poured  over  the  land  with 
the  resistless  sweep  of  Niagara's  floods,  was  in  the  begin- 
ning but  a  trickling  drop  from  the  crevice,  or  a  tiny  spring 
gushing  up  from  the  land.  It  gathered  force  as  it  flowed. 
It  swept  the  hamlets,  the  villages,  the  towns,  the  cities, 
and  thus  embraced  the  land  within  its  blessed,  and  almost 
omnipotent  tide  of  purgation  and  purification  —  whose  roll- 
ing and  resistless  surges  carried  with  them  those  pest  houses 
of  existing  society,  drinking  shops  of  every  grade,  and 
finally,  the  distilleries  of  the  liquid  death  themselves.  The 
work  accomplished  was  grand  and  memorable,  and  although 


296  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

to-day  the  philanthropist  and  the  Christian  look,  with  sad- 
dened heart  and  tearful  eyes,  upon  the  new  and  far-spread- 
ing ravages  of  intemperance,  and  feel  that  the  plague  was 
only  sta}-ed,  and  not  uprooted,  it  is  impossible  to  calculate 
the  sum  of  deadly  woes  which  the  temperance  reformation, 
of  '.he  period  alluded  to,  actually  cancelled  for  that  genera- 
tion and  for  the  succeeding  one,  which  indeed  but  for  its 
beneficent  sway,  might  have  been  born  to  an  inheritance 
of  physical  and  moral  degradation. 

The  name  of  George  Nixon  Briggs  is  inscribed  upon  the 
roll  of  the  earliest  and  boldest  and  most  persistent  and 
most  successful  of  the  champions  who  went  out,  in  the 
interests  of  desolated  families  and  blighted  homes,  against 
the  dragon  of  strong  drink.  If  he  had  no  philanthropic 
record  behind  that  of  his  devotion  and  sacrifices  in  the 
cause  of  temperance,  his  name  and  memory  would  still  be 
dear  to  those  who  love  their  fellow-men.  It  would  deserve 
to  be  recorded,  if  not  above,  yet  not  below  Abou  Ben 
Adhem's,  on  the  angel's  scroll. 

When  he  first  drew  his  sword  in  this  cause — which  was 
never  afterwards  sheathed  till  death  found  its  scabbard 
again  —  he  had  no  inducement  to  do  so  save  that  alone 
which  sprang  from  a  benevolent  heart,  under  the  influence 
of  Christian  principle.  He  saw  the  condition  of  the  country 
—  its  desolation  and  swift  coming-doom  from  the  preva- 
lence of  drunkenness, — and  he  wept  over  it. 

His  own  habits  of  abstinence  long  ante-dated  the  2Teat 
movement  against  the  evil.  They  were  the  result  of  prin- 
ciple, originating  from  his  experience  in  early  manhood  of 
the  insidious  power  of  appetite  over  the  will. 

It  is  interesting,  in  a  review  like  this,  to  catch  the  first 
glimpses  of  a  great  progress  —  to  see,  as  it  were,  the  very 


HIS   TEMPERANCE  EFFORTS.  297 

first  spark  struck  out  by  the  dint  of  the  young  hero's  sword 
in  the  conflict  into  which  he  went  at  the  bidding,  and  for 
the  behalf  of  suffering,  weeping,  perishing  humanity.  This 
first  glimpse  we  may  fortunately  obtain.  It  was  at  Lanes- 
boro',  the  scene  of  his  student-life,  of  his  resolute  strength, 
nourished  on  poverty,  and  cheered  by  sympathy,  of  his 
early  religious  zeal,  of  his  young  and  only  love ;  it  was 
there  he  fleshed  his  blade  for  the  first,  in  the  great  battle 
with  the  drasjon. 

Strange  as  it  may  appear,  the  narrower  scene  of  this 
first  encounter  was  a  small  tavern.  A  temperance  meeting 
was  held  there,  the  first  of  its  kind.  It  was  in  1828,  far 
back  into  the  twilight  of  the  great  reformation.  He  had 
drawn  up  a  pledge  to  be  considered.  It  was  no  compromise 
with  the  danger.  It  declared  total  abstinence  from  "  ardent 
spirits." 

Mr.  H.,  a  lawyer  present,  opposed  the  adoption  of  a 
pledge  so  broad.  He  said  it  was  going  too  far  ;  that  there 
were  times  when  it  was  necessary  to  use  a  little  —  when 
washing  sheep,  in  haying,  or  harvesting ;  in  winter,  when 
cutting  wood  upon  the  hills.  He  did  not  deny  the  need  of 
temperance,  but  total  abstinence  was  an  extreme  to  be 
avoided. 

Mr.  Briggs  insisted  that  the  only  safety  was  in  letting  it 
entirely  alone  as  a  beverage,  that  a  little,  occasionally,  was 
not  necessary,  but  injurious,  and  he  used  the  following 
illustration :  — 

"A  rattlesnake  lies  here  on  the  floor.  He  is  qniet.  One  man 
says  :  '  I  can  touch  him.  He  won't  bite  me.  I  am  not  afraid.'  He 
is  told  not  to  do  it.  There  is  danger  if  he  touches  him ;  he  is 
safe  if  he  lets  him  alone.  He  replies  :  '  I  can  take  care  of  myself, 
I  am  not  afraid  of  the  snake.'    Kemonstrance  is  vain;  he  stoops, 


298  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

he  touches  him ;  the  snake  strikes  the  presumptuous  hand  with  his 
venomous  fangs ;  the  man  dies." 

As  Mr.  Briggs  closed  his  speech,  a  man,  partially  intox- 
icated, who  lived  near  the  Hancock  line,  leaned  forward  into 
the  room,  and,  with  unstead}^  speech  said,  "  Squire  Curtis 
(the  chairman),  Squire  H.  has  'spressed  my  mind  'zacly." 
A  loud  laugh  followed ;  when  Squire  H.  arose,  and  said : 
"  I  knew  that  man  when  he  was  a  sober,  respectable  citi- 
zen, a  man  of  property.  His  appearance  here  to-night  has 
destroyed  all  my  argument.  By  taking  a  little  occasion- 
ally, he  has  been  brought  to  this  condition.  I  go  for  the 
pledge." 

That  was  a  bold  stroke,  and  effectively  served.  Who 
could  see  it  and  doubt  that  there  was  a  young  and  able 
champion  springing  up  to  oppose  intemperance  ! 

When  he  was  a  young  man,  he  used  tobacco  and  snuff, 
and  of  the  latter,  unusual  quantities.  Perceiving  that  these 
habits  were  injurious  to  him,  he  resolved  to  abandon  them. 
His  abstinence  from  snuff  occasioned  a  severe  illness  of 
several  days,  and  consequent  depression  of  spirits.  But 
he  was  firm  in  his  purpose,  and  he  conquered  himself  com- 
pletely ;  and  alleged  afterwards,  that  "there  can  be  no 
excuse  for  any  person  falling  into  the  use  of  tobacco,  and 
that  its  use  is  both  unnatural  and  injurious." 

The  following  extract  from  a  letter  to  his  sons,  though 
written  several  }rears  later,  while  he  was  in  Washington, 
will  find  an  appropriate  place  in  connection  with  this  remi- 
niscence :  — 

"My  dear  Sons: 


"  Before  I  left  home,  some  one  told  me  the  boys  in 

Mr.  Hotchkin's  school  had  got  into  the  habit  of  smoking  cigars. 


A  RETROSPECTIVE   GLANCE.  299 

I  hope  neither  of  you  will  be  so  unwise  or  indiscreet  as  to  allow 
yourselves  to  be  led  into  so  foolish  and  bad  a  habit.  I  should  be 
very  unhappy  to  know  that  was  the  case.  Theve  is  no  excuse  for 
any  person  to  use  tobacco,  least  of  all  for  boys.  I  beg  of  you,  my 
dear  boys,  if  you  have  any  regard  for  your  own  welfare,  and  the 
feelings  and  wishes  of  your  absent  father,  never  permit  tobacco  to 
enter  your  mouth  in  the  form  of  a  cigar,  or  in  any  other  shape."  .  . 

To  go  back  a  little,  chronologically,  of  the  occasion  to 
which  allusion  has  just  been  made,  there  lies  reserved  from 
his  correspondence  when  he  was  in  Congress,  here  and 
there  a  letter,  designed  especially  to  illustrate  the  phase  of 
his  life  now  under  contemplation.  One  of  these  letters  was 
written  about  a  year  after  the  Congressional  Temperance 
Society  was  organized.  It  was  an  eloquent  commentary 
on  the  wisdom  and  necessity  of  that  organization,  which, 
alas  !  was  not  effectual  in  keeping  all  the  members  of  the 
National  Legislature  out  of  the  way  of  ruin.  Intemperance 
had,  indeed,  a  fearful  hold  upon  those  who  of  all  other 
men  needed  to  be  self-controlled,  that  they  might  bring 
all  their  faculties  unimpaired  to  the  great  work  of  legisla- 
tion for  the  Republic  and  the  States,  whose  servants  they 
were.  In  not  a  few  letters  home  from  the  National  Capitol, 
did  Mr.  Briggs  record  and  deplore  the  ravages  and  wrecks 
of  body  and  mind  wrought  by  strong  drink,  within  the  halls 
of  Congress.     Here  follows  one  of  these  sad  memorials  :  — 


o 


Washington,  April,  1834. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

We  have  had  to  perform  to-day  the  melancholy 

duty  of  burying  another  member  —  General  B.,  from  South  Caro- 
lina. The  circumstances  of  his  death  rendered  the  occurrence,  if 
possible,  more  shocking  than  was  the  death  of  Judge  Bouldin.1 

1  Vide  Chapter  X. 


300  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE    X.  ERIGGS. 

Just  before  sundown  last  night  he  shot  himself  in  a  room,  with  a 
pistol.  He  has  for  years  indulged  in  habits  of  intemperance.  Like 
many  other  unfortunate  victims  of  appetite,  his  indulgences  were 
periodical.  During  these  spells  he  became  partially  distracted, 
and  ferocious.  Some  time  before  he  came  here,  last  fall,  he  had 
united  himself  to  the  Methodist  Society,  not  because  he  professed 
really  to  have  become  religious,  but  in  the  hope  that,  by  this 
means,  he  might  be  placed  under  restraints  that  would  help  him 
break  from  his  vicious  habits,  and  finally  become  a  Christian ;  but, 
unfortunately,  the  power  of  appetite  and  the  force  of  temptation 
proved  too  strong  for  resolutions  thus  taken. 

For  several  weeks  past  he  has  been  extremely  irregular,  and, 
most  of  the  time,  mad  with  drunkenness.  Alternating  between 
penitence  and  passion,  reason  and  insanity,  he  has  given  himself 
and  those  about  him  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  When  not  under 
the  exciting  influence  ef  spirits  or  laudanum  —  which,  during  his 
debauches,  he  took  in  great  quantities  —  he  was  subjected  to  the 
most  mortifying  reflections.  For  a  few  days  past  he  became  quite 
feeble,  was  confined  to  his  house,  and  promised  that  he  would 
drink  no  more.  Yesterday,  after  the  House  adjourned,  and  after 
dinner,  Governor  Murphy  —  a  member  from  Alabama  —  went  into 
his  room,  and  at  his  request  read  a  letter  to  him  from  his  wife. 
It  was  full  of  kind  messages,  and  expressed  the  most  affectionate 
solicitude  for  his  welfare.  Probably,  having  seen  in  the  public 
prints  enough  to  satisfy  her  that  he  had  fallen  into  his  besetting 
sin,  she  wished  by  the  language  of  soothing  kindness  to  reclaim 
him,  or,  if  he  had  been  reclaimed,  to  give  him  consolation  and 
solace.  This  outpouring  of  feeling  from  the  heart  of  his  pious 
and  affectionate  wife,  was  too  much  for  him.  It  overcame  him ; 
and,  while  his  friend  was  reading  the  letter,  he  wept  like  a  child. 

Doubtless  a  consciousness  of  the  turpitude  of  his  conduct,  which 
made  him  unworthy  of  the  warm  and  devoted  affection  of  his 
absent  and  injured  wife,  threw  all  the  passions  and  feelings  of  his 
soul  into  commotion ;  and,  in  the  tumult  of  their  rage,  he  suddenly 
arose  from  his  bed,  and  walked  to  a  bureau  in  the  room,  and, 
although  Governor  Murphy  was  looking  directly  at  him  all  the 
while  (B.  kept  his  back  towards  him,  so  as  to  hide  from  his.  view 


A    MELANCHOLY  IXC  IDE  XT.  301 

the  real  object),  he  took  a  loaded  pistol  from  his  drawer,  instantly 
put  it  to  his  head,  just  above  his  ear,  and  drove  the  ball  through 
his  brain.  His  friend  saw  the  barrel  of  the  pistol  gleam  as  he 
raised  it ;  but  the  motion  was  so  sudden  that  he  could  not  inter- 
fere.   He  fell  instantly  dead. 

How  great  is  our  obligation  to  that  beneficent  God,  who  not 
only  surrounds  us  with  the  multitudes  of  His  mercies,  but  who  by 
His  grace  saves  us  from  the  madness  and  fury  of  our  own  passions 
and  propensities. 

General  B.  was  one  of  the  largest  men  I  ever  saw.  He  was 
more  than  six  feet  high,  and  weighed  over  three  hundred  pounds. 
When  himself,  he  was  an  intelligent  gentleman,  a  noble,  amiable, 
and  generous  man,  and  a  devoted  friend.  When  under  the  influ- 
ence of  stimulants,  he  was  a  ferocious  savage.  Let  those  who 
advocate  the  use  of  ardent  spirits,  count  up  its  benefits  in  every 
possible  form,  and  put  them  in  the  scale  against  this  dismal  case, 
produced  directly  by  its  use,  and  see  which  end  of  the  beam  will 
preponderate. 

May  peace,  health,  and  happiness  fill  your  cup.     Good  night. 

Thine  ever, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

Not  a  twelvemonth  later,  another  of  these  ghastly  sacri- 
fices to  the  Moloch  of  strong  drink  occurred  in  Congress. 
It  forms  the  melancholy  theme  of  a  second  letter  from  Mr. 
Briggs  to  his  wife,  and  was  one  of  the  events  which  fired 
his  soul  and  made  his  tongue  fervid  with  that  eloquence, 
before  which  all  classes  of  his  auditors  were  powerfully 
moved :  — 

Washington,  29  Jan.,  1835. 
My  dear  Wife: 

The  business  of  the  House  to-day  has  been  interrupted  by  the 
death  of  a  member  —  Mr.  D.,  of  South  Carolina.  He  has  not  been 
in  the  House  during  the  session.  He  was  sick  before  he  left  home, 
and  detained  long  on  the  way  here.  He  has  been  in  the  city  per- 
haps three  weeks.     His  disease  was  induced,  continued,  and  con- 

26 


302  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

summated  by  intemperance.  It  is  said  that  since  he  has  been 
in  this  city  he  has  drank  a  quart  of  brandy  per  day.  He  was  a 
man  of  brilliant  and  shining  genius,  and  of  a  generous,  noble,  and 
manly  heart,  but  with  all  these  excellent  and  high  qualities,  he 
lived  and  died  like  a  fool. 

Humanity  must  drop  a  tear  at  his  fall  from  that  high  and  palmy 
state  where  his  talents  and  noble  qualities  had  placed  him  here ; 
but  not  at  his  death,  for  hope  of  reformation  had  ceased,  and  the 
longer  he  lived  the  deeper  he  would  have  sunk  in  shame  and  igno- 
miny. I  should  think  him  forty-five  years  old  —  a  man  of  fine  face, 
person,  and  manners ;  who  by  nature  had  a  fine  constitution.  I 
am  glad  to  know  that  he  is  a  bachelor,  and  leaves  no  widow  and 
orphans  to  mourn  over  his  folly  and  shame,  and  lament  his 
untimely  fate.  What  a  lesson  such  a  case  presents  to  those  who 
yield  their  reason  to  their  appetite!  "Lead  me  not  into  temp- 
tation, but  deliver  me  from  evil,"  is  a  prayer  that  should  be  always 
rising  from  the  lips  of  poor  erring  mortals.  May  He  whose  power 
and  grace  is  alone  sufficient  to  save  us,  keep  me  in  the  way  of 
truth  and  peace.    May  He  have  you  all  in  His  holy  keeping. 

Thine  forever, 

G.  N.  Beiggs. 

It  was  not  long  after  this  that  he  adopted  the  principle 
of  total  abstinence,  and  on  every  occasion  afforded  him, 
earnestly  advocated  it.  The  meeting-houses  and  school- 
houses  of  Berkshire  rang  with  his  manly  appeals  and  his 
ardent  eloquence  in  the  good  cause. 

From  the  time  of  his  first  entering  Congress  until  he 
retired  from  its  councils,  he  was  there,  as  elsewhere,  a 
faithful  advocate  of  temperance.  Early  in  the  year  1833, 
the  Congressional  Temperance  Society  was  organized  ;  and 
he  was  one  of  the  four  members  of  its  executive  committee. 
His  associates  on  this  committee  were  the  Hon.  Theodore 
Frelinghuysen  of  New  Jersey,  the  Hon.  George  Blair  of 
Tennessee,  and  the  Hon.  E.  Cook  of  Ohio. 


AXE C DOTE   OF  ELDER   LELAXD.  303 

As  an  illustration  of  the  power  of  political  preferences 
over  the  moral  inclination  and  judgment  of  men,  it  may  be 
related  here  that  the  young  Berkshire  lawyer,  when  he  was 
nominated  for  Congress,  lost  the  vote  of  his  friend,  and  of 
his  father's  friend  no  less,  —  the  venerable  John  Leland, — 
notwithstanding  the  latter's  admiration  of  his  temperance 
principles,  because  he  suspected  he  would  be  a  Clay-man 
in  Congress. 

Soon  after  the  election  was  held  he  met  the  Elder  ;  and 
the  eccentric  old  gentleman  thus  addressed  him :  "  Well, 
George,  you  have  ridden  a  cold-water  horse  to  Washington. 
I  am  glad  you  are  elected ;  but  I  voted  against  you,  as  I 
was  afraid  if  the  election  of  President  went  into  the  House, 
you  would  vote  for  Henry  Clay,  of  Kentucky ; "  to  which 
the  young  representative  replied,  "  You  are  right,  Elder  ;  I 
should." 

Mr.  Briggs  was  not  (for  some  unrecorded  reason)  at  the 
meeting  of  the  first  National  Temperance  Convention,  held 
at  Philadelphia  in  May  of  1833  ;  but  at  the  second  conven- 
tion, held  three  years  afterwards,  at  Saratoga,  his  pres- 
ence, his  voice,  and  his  zeal  did  much  to  animate  the 
friends  of  the  cause.  At  this  time  he  took  a  very  decided 
stand  in  favor  of  "  total  abstinence  from  every  intoxicating 
beverage,"  which  was  then  the  advanced  doctrine  of  the 
reform,  leaving  the  original  pledge  far  behind.  All  the 
great  advocates  were  not  yet  up  to  this  point ;  and  Mr. 
Briggs  discussed  with  a  learned  professor  and  divine,  the 
philosophy,  moralnry,  and  scriptural  obligation  of  the  new 
ground,  so  eloquently  and  effectively,  that  he  greatly  helped 
forward  the  advance  movement. 

One,  who  was  present  upon  that  occasion,  furnishes  for 
these  pages  the  following  reminiscences  :  — 


304  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

"  We  call  up  the  yet  fresh  remembrance  of  the  first  time  we  ever 
saw  Governor  Briggs,  as  furnishing  at  least  one  culmination  of  the 
eloquence  that  has  been  awarded  to  him. 

"  It  was  at  a  National  Temperance  Convention,  held  at  Saratoga 
more  than  twentj^  years  ago.  There  was  in  the  convention  a  large 
representation  of  distinguished  talents ;  for  it  was  at  that  stage  of 
the  temperance  movement  when  the  advance  position  was  being 
taken  of  total  abstinence,  not  only  from  alcoholic,  but  from  all 
fermented  intoxicated  drinks.  On  the  one  side  were  ranged  Pro- 
fessor—  now  Bishop  —  Potter,  and  other  able  conservative  men, 
who  were  doubtful  of  the  proposed  innovation.  On  the  other  side 
were  equally  able,  more  bold,  progressive  men.  The  discussion 
rose  high;  when,  at  its  full  tide,  near  the  close  of  the  second  day's 
forenoon  session  of  the  convention,  a  middle-aged,  plain-looking 
man,  wearing  then,  as  ever,  a  simple  black  cravat  without  a  collar, 
full-chested,  and  of  a  '  ruddy  countenance,'  arose  in  one  corner, 
under  the  gallery  of  the  old  Presbyterian  Church,  and,  first  in 
plain,  direct  argument,  then  in  impassioned  and  mighty  appeal, 
bore  down  on  the  side  of  total  abstinence  from  all  that  intoxi- 
cates, as  the  only  safe  and  true  ground  for  all  the  friends  of  tem- 
perance reform.  It  is  safe  to  say  (all  who  with  us  remember  that 
speech  —  and  those  who  heard  have  never  forgotten  it  —  will 
second  the  claim),  the  hearts  of  the  assembly  were  swayed  by  that 
utterance  as  the  trees  of  the  wood  are  before  a  strong  wind.  The 
highest  tribute  to  it  came  at  the  opening  of  the  afternoon  session, 
from  Dr.  Potter,  who,  feeling  his  position  to  be  fairly  assailed,  imme- 
diately took  the  floor  with  the  opening  remark  :  '  I  had  not  intended 
to  trespass  further  on  the  time  of  the  convention,  but  for  the  very 
gallant  assault  made  on  me  by  the  gentleman  from  Massachusetts.' 
Inquiry  was  alive,  at  the  closetof  the  forenoon  session,  as  to  who 
that  plain  but  powerful  pleader  for  total  abstinence  was.  «  That,' 
said  Judge  Culver,  our  informant,  '  is  the  member  of  Congress 
from  the  Berkshire  District;  his  name  is  Briggs — George  N. 
Briggs.'  It  was  enough  to  place  him  as  a  landmark  in  my  mem- 
ory ;  and  the  remembrance  of  that  occasion,  often  since,  has  been 
revived  on  hearing  him  speak.  His  eloquence  not  only  carried 
captive  the  understanding,  but  the  hearts,  of  those  he  addressed." 


CHxVPTEE    XXV. 

THE  WASHINGTONIAN  MOVEMENT —  ITS  FORCE  AT  THE  CAPITAL  — HON. 
THOMAS  F.  MARSHALL'S  PLEDGE  —  LETTER  TO  MR.  BRIGGS  —  A  NEW 
ERA  IX  TEMPERANCE  —  TRIBUTE  FROM  DR.  MARSH  —  NOTE  FROM  MR. 
MARSHALL  —  A  GOLD  MEDAL  —  TEMPERANCE  AMONG  THE  COLORED  PEO- 
PLE—A TOUCHING  LETTER  FROM  A  COLORED  MAN  — GOVERNOR  BRIGGS'S 
REPLY  —  ANECDOTES — THE  MYSTERIOUS  WOMAN  —  HIS  TEMPERANCE 
"BRIEF"  — PRESIDENT  OF  THE  AMERICAN  TEMPERANCE    UNION  IN    1SG0. 

'~N  1840,  the  famous  "  Washingtonian  "  movement  was 
one  of  the  most  extraordinary  impulses  of  the  tidal 
wave  of  reform  which  was  sweeping  over  the  land. 
It  reached  the  very  lowest  classes  and  cases  of  inebri- 
ates. Multitudes  of  these  crowded  the  meetings, 
which  were  held  almost  nightly  in  many  places.  In  Wash- 
ington, this  new  phase  of  the  conflict  enlisted  all  the  sym- 
pathies of  Mr.  Briggs,  who  went  —  in  answer  to  every  sum- 
mons, to  the  extent  of  his  strength  and  time  —  to  hasten 
forward  the  work,  to  cheer  the  repentant,  to  arouse  the 
stupid,  and  to  lift  up  the  fallen  and  helpless,  by  his  power- 
ful and  persuasive  strains. 

He  did  not  intermit  these  labors  while  there  was  scope 
and  occasion  for  their  continuance.  It  was  early  in  1842 
that  he  had  the  extreme  happiness  of  stretching  out  his 
hand  effectually  to  a  brother  Congressman.  The  Hon. 
Thomas  F.  Marshall,  of  Kentucky,  was  so  much  a  slave  to 
intemperate  habits,  that  there  seemed  little  doubt  but  he 
would  fall  a  victim  to  the  maddening  lust.  His  brilliant 
talents,  his  fascinating  oratory,  his  personal  attractions, 

26*  305 


g06  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

created  a  profound  interest  in  his  case  ;  and  all  that  friends 
could  do  to  divorce  him  from  the  fiery  cup  was  done,  with- 
out avail.  On  the  8th  of  January  he  entered  the  hall  of 
the  House  in  a  state  of  intense  nervous  excitement  and 
terror,  and,  rushing  almost  madly  across  the  hall,  to  where 
Mr.  Briggs  was  seated,  exclaimed,  "  Briggs,  you  must 
write  me  a  pledge,  that  I  may  sign,  and  live  !  " 

Mr.  Briggs  told  his  daughter,  subsequently,  that  he 
thought  Mr.  Marshall  was  beside  himself,  and  was  amazed 
at  his  strange  request.  He  said  that  he  perceived,  how- 
ever, the  signs  of  profound  distress  and  earnestness  on  his 
fine  face,  and,  without  hesitation,  he  wrote  the  following 
pledge  :  — 

';I  pledge  myself  never  to  use  intoxicating  liquors  as  a  drink, 
and  request  that  my  name  be  entered  as  a  member  of  the  Wash- 
ington Temperance  Society." 

To  this  pledge  Mr.  Marshall  instantly  subscribed,  with 
a  trembling  hand  and  in  irregular  characters,  his  name, 
"  Thomas  F.  Marshall,  M.  C,  Ky.  ;  "  and,  having  done  so, 
said,  "  I  feel  better  now  ! " 

Of  his  appearance  that  night  at  a  public  meeting,  and  his 
repetition  of  his  pledge,  the  following  letter  furnishes  the 
interesting  details :  — 

Washington,  8th  Jan.,  1842. 
My  dear  Wife  : 

It  is  Saturday  night ;  and,  as  I  am  going  to  our  evening  meet- 
ing, I  must  be  short.  Last  night  I  attended  a  temperance  meeting, 
at  which  Mr.  Marshall,  of  Kentucky,  whose  habits  you  knew  some- 
thing of  last  summer,  came  forward  and  took  the  pledge,  and  made 
a  short,  but  brilliant  and  touching  speech.  He  is  a  genius  of  the 
first  order;  but  was  on  the  brink  of  the  precipice  over  which  so 
many  have  fallen.     His  case  has  excited  more  interest  than  that  of 


THE   TOTAL  ABSTINENCE  STANDARD   SET  UP.  307 

any  individual  I  have  ever  known.     I  think  he  will  hold  out. 

Heaven  grant  he  may. 

Thine, 

G.  X.  Briggs. 

In  a  speech  which  Mr.  Briggs  made  immediately  after 
Mr.  Marshall's  eloquent  confessions  and  pledges  and  ap- 
peals, he  used  these  memorable  words  :  "  From  this  hour  a 
new  era  in  the  cause  of  temperance  may  be  dated."  To 
adopt  here  the  language  of  another  : 1  — 

"A  new  spring  was,  indeed,  at  once  given  to  the  cause.  The 
old  Congressional  Society,  formed  ten  years  before  on  the  ardent- 
spirit  pledge,  had  died  out ;  and  on  the  9th  of  February  a  new 
Congressional  Temperance  Society  was  organized  on  total  absti- 
nence principles,  and  Mr.  Briggs  was  chosen  president.  On  the 
25th  of  February  a  large  meeting  was  held  in  the  Capitol.  The 
magnificent  hall  was  filled  to  overflowing.  Mr.  Briggs  made  an 
address,  in  which  he  gave  a  history  of  the  old  society,  which, 
'  with*  a  pledge  in  one  hand  and  a  bottle  of  champagne  in  the 
other,  had  died  of  intemperance.'  He  was  followed  by  many  great 
men,  —  Mr.  Williams  of  Connecticut,  Mr.  Fillmore  of  New  York, 
Mr.  Gilmer  of  Virginia,  Mr.  Burnell  of  Massachusetts,  Dr.  Sewall, 
John  Hawkins,  and  Hon.  Thomas  F.  Marshall.  Eighty  signed  the 
pledge.  Soon  after,  Mr.  Briggs  retired  from  Congress ;  and,  los- 
ing its  head,  the  society  declined.  No  sooner  was  he  placed  in 
the  Governor's  chair  in  Massachusetts  than  he  was  chosen  Presi- 
dent of  the  Massachusetts  Legislative  Temperance  Society.  His 
speech  on  the  occasion  was  one  of  his  most  eloquent.  He  hoped 
before  the  session  closed  every  name  would  be  enrolled.  '  We 
shall  not,'  said  he,  '  do  so  much  for  the  public  good  by  legislating, 
as  we  could  by  contributing  to  the  temperance  reform.  If  we 
should  all  lend  our  exertions,  we  might  soon  say, — there  is  no 
drunkard  in  Massachusetts ;  there  is  no  wretched  family  in  our 
State.  We  would  live,  then,  with  but  little  legislation.'  During 
his  whole  gubernatorial  term,  he  was  most  active  in  sustaining 

iRev.  Dr.  Marsh,  Secretary  of  the  American  Temperance  Union. 


308  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

the  temperance  reform.  We  well  remember  seeing  him  lead  the 
great  procession  of  reformed  men  in  their  mighty  march  around 
Boston." 

From  the  day  upon  which  Mr.  Marshall  signed  the 
pledge,  Mr.  Briggs  felt  for  him  the  deepest  and  most  fra- 
ternal interest,  and  was  everything  to  him  that  a  friend 
could  be.  Some  months  later,  he  received  from  him  the 
following  note,  which  shows  how  deeply  Mr.  Briggs  had 
touched  the  nature  of  his  friend  :  — 

"Washington,  May  2,  1842. 
Dear  Briggs  : 

The  rain,  and  other  things,  prevented  my  calling.  I  shall  start 
at  six  o'clock  in  the  morning.  If  you  love  me,  follow  me  at  four. 
I  will  wait  in  Philadelphia  till  Wednesday  morning,  and  thus  we 
will  enter  the  great  city  together.  I  shall  be  lost  and  dumb  with- 
out you.     Come  on,  and  take  care  of  your  proselyte. 

Yours,  sincerely  and  always, 

Thomas  F.  Marshall. 

Before  leaving  Washington,  at  the  close  of  his  Con- 
gressional life,  he  received  from  the  Freemen's  Total 
Abstinence  Society  of  the  city,  an  exquisitely-wrought 
massive  gold  medal,  bearing  inscriptions  of  respect  and 
affection  from  a  large  number  of  his  friends  with  whom  he 
had  labored.  He  always  called  this  and  other  similar  med- 
als, his  crown  jewels;  and,  when  a  young  girl,  it  was  his 
daughter's  pride  to  wear  one  of  them,  bearing  a  star  in  its 
centre,  as  a  pendent  to  her  bracelet. 

This  beneficent  movement  reached,  as  before  remarked, 
all  conditions  of  the  people  ;  and,  perhaps,  no  single  class 
secured  more  of  its  inestimable  blessings  than  the  colored 
people.  They  were  enthusiastic  in  their  efforts  to  promote 
the  cause  among  themselves.     The  letter  which  follows  was 


LETTER  FROM  A    COLORED   MAJST.  309 

written  by  one  of  their  number,  of  pure  African  blood, — 
which,  both  in  sentiment  and  style,  would  do  credit  to  a 
far  more  privileged  man  :  — 

Troy,  July  28,  1845. 
To  nis  Excellency  Governor  Briggs  : 

Sir,  —  I  have  thought  it  would  not  be  altogether  uninteresting  to 
you  to  receive  a  little  information  in  regard  to  the  progress  of 
temperance  among  the  people  of  color.  The  labor  which  you  have 
given  to  this  enterprise  among  all  classes  of  people,  both  at  home 
and  abroad,  has  emboldened  me  to  address  you.  If  I  mistake  not, 
it  is  as  gratifying  to  the  patriot  and  philanthropist  to  hear  the 
gurgling  of  the  sweet  waters  of  temperance  flowing  along  the 
lowly  valley,  as  it  is  to  behold  the  same  streams  dashing  from  the 
high  mountains. 

About  Ave  years  ago  several  of  the  temperance  men  among  our 
people  from  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Massachusetts,  and  Connecti- 
cut, assembled  for  the  purpose  of  uniting  their  efforts  for  the  gen- 
eral advancement  of  the  cause.  They  succeeded  in  forming  the 
"  Delevan  Temperance  Union."  These  men  immediately  went  to 
work  in  their  own  neighborhoods,  and  invited  all  to  come  to  the 
crystal  waters.  Last  year  the  annual  meeting  was  held  at  the  foot 
of  the  Catskill  Mountains.  There  were  met  four  thousand  sons 
and  daughters  of  temperance,  having  good  music  and  appropriate 
banners.  The  meeting  was  held  in  one  of  the  beautiful  groves  in 
that  vicinity;  ''such  were  God's  first  temples."  It  was  a  happy 
meeting.  A  king's  palace  could  not  have  added  anything  to  our 
joy.  Harmony,  peace,  and  good-will  pervaded  every  rank.  We 
drank  from  the  limpid  streams  that  came  leaping  down  from  the 
glorious  mountain  whose  head  is  hid  in  the  purple  clouds.  This 
year  our  annual  meeting  was  held  in  the  city  of  Hudson,  and  the 
most  moderate  estimation  made  by  eye-witnesses  has  placed  the 
number  at  eight  thousand.  Beautiful  banners  and  enchanting 
music  were  not  wanting.  Three  steamers,  well  loaded,  moored  at 
the  dock  that  day.  The  convention  was  held  in  the  park  in  front 
of  the  Court  House.  A  large  concourse  of  citizens  greeted  us 
with  their  presence.    Addresses  were  delivered  by  speakers  from 


310  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

New  York,  Philadelphia,  Albany;  from  Ohio  and  New  Jersey. 
The  singing  was  led  by  Richard  Thompson,  of  Albany.  There 
was  no  rioting,  no  profane  or  otherwise  indecent  language ; 
neither  was  there  an  accident  of  any  Mud.  "  Old  Berkshire  "  was 
most  gloriously  represented  that  day.  There  are  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  societies  belonging  to  the  Union,  comprising  about 
ten  thousand  people.  The  Hudsonians  did  much  to  make  the 
meeting  pleasant.  The  progress  of  the  temperance  cause  among 
our  people,  together  with  the  other  signs  of  the  times,  assure  mi 
that  "  Ethiopia  will  soon  stretch  out  her  bauds  unto  God." 

Will  the  Governor  be  pleased  to  accept  my  solicitude  for  his 
health,   and    permit   me  to  subscribe   myself,  with  respect,  his 

obedient  servant, 

m  Henry  H.  Garnet, 

President  Delevan  Temperance  Union. 

To  this  interesting  letter.  Governor  Briggs  sent  the  fol- 
lowing reply :  — 

Pittsfield,  7th  Aug.,  1845. 
Friend  Garnet  : 

I  have  your  esteemed  favor  of  28th  of  July.  I  can  hardly  express 
the  pleasure  which  your  account  of  the  progress  of  temperance 
among  the  people  of  color  has  given  me.  In  this  great  cause, 
more  of  human  destiny  is  involved  than  in  any  other,  except  the 
cause  of  Christianity.  Under  the  influenced  intemperance,  men 
are  dead  to  whatever  is  noble  and  good,  in  this  or  a  future  life.  I 
have  often  contemplated  the  direful  effects  of  this  vice  upon  your 
wronged  and  injured  race,  with  painful  interest.  When  to  the 
injustice  and  prejudices  of  their  fellow-men,  wearing  a  whiter 
skin,  they  themselves  add  the  curse  of  intemperance,  their  condi- 
tion is  wretched,  indeed.  With  peculiar  satisfaction,  I  have  ob- 
served in  this,  and  in  other  parts  of  the  country,  the  redeeming 
effects  of  the  glorious  temperance  reformation  upon  their  charac- 
ter and  prospects.  The  account  given  in  your  beautiful  letter 
more  than  confirms  what  I  had  before  seen  and  heard.  In  the 
hands  of  that  divine  Master,  whose  servant  you  are,  you  have  been 
instrumental  in  improving  the  condition  and  elevating  the  charac- 


AXECDOTES.  311 

ter  of  your  brethren  of  the  African  family.     May  He  continue  to 

strengthen  you  in  the  good  work  in  which  you  are  engaged,  and 

cause  your  labors  to  be  still  more  blessed  and  prospered.     God 

grant  that  you  and  those  who  labor  with  you  in  the  cause  ot 

religion  and  humanity,  of  whatever  color  or  race,  may  live  to  see 

the  day  when -Ethopia  shall."  indeed,  "stretch  forth  her  hands 

unto  God."    I  thank  you  for  your  very  interesting  letter,  and  shall 

ever  be  happy  to  hear  from  you,  and  to  meet  you. 

Truly,  your  friend, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

Mr.  Marsh,  before  quoted,  relates  the  following  anec- 
dotes of  his  Congressional  life  :  — 

"To  a  gentleman  in  Washington,  who,  at  a  public  table,  after 
professing  temperance,  had  put  the  glass  to  his  lips,  and  had  said 
to  him,  ;  I  only  make  believe ; '  Mr.  Briggs  said,  '  Sir,  I  never 
make  believe.' 

"  To  a  lady  of  high  rank  and  influence,  with  whom  he  was  on 
terms  of  intimacy,  he  said  in  his  mild  and  gentle  way,  '  Do  you 
feel  that  you  are  doing  all  the  good  you  can  in  this  world  ?  Are 
you  doing  what  you  can  in  your  high  station  for  the  cause  of  tem- 
perance ? '  His  words  were  not  lost  —  she  banished  wine  from  her 
table,  and  her  daughter,  now  a  lady  of  wealth  and  refinement,  has 
no  wine  on  her  table  and  none  at  her  parties." 

The  same  chronicler  says,  — 

"Governor  Briggs  was  oftentimes  truly  eloquent,  especially  in 
the  relation  of  anecdotes.  His  story  of  the  poor  woman  (whose 
four  drunken  sons  lay  in  the  graveyard)  entering  the  town  meet- 
ing, and  remonstrating  with  the  authorities  who  were  about  to 
resolve  upon  the  issue  of  licenses,  is  one  of  the  most  eloquent 
things  in  the  English  language,  and  it  is  amazing  that  it  has  not 
banished  license  from  the  civilized  world." 

This  memorable  anecdote  may  have  been  repeated  by 
him  more  than  once,  as  indeed  it  well  deserves  to  be  ;    but 


312  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   URIGGS. 

it  is  here  recorded  as  it  was  first  related  at  a  great  meeting 
in  Albany.  It  was  subsequently  printed  in  two  or  three 
forms,  with  an  illustration,  by  the  American  Temperance 
Union,  and  widely  circulated  with  remarkable  effect.  It 
was  reprinted  also  as  a  page  temperance  tract  in  England, 
under  the  title  of  "The  Mysterious  Woman."  It  could 
hardly  be  omitted  from  this  volume,  in  a  review  of  the  tem- 
perance labors  of  Governor  Briggs,  without  injustice  :  — 

"THE  MYSTERIOUS  WOMAN. 

"At  a  certain  town  meeting  in  Pennsylvania,  the  question  came 
up  whether  any  persons  should  be  licensed  to  sell  rum.  The 
clergyman,  the  deacon,  and  physician,  strange  as  it  may  now  ap- 
pear, all  favored  it.  One  man  only  spoke  against  it,  because  of 
the  mischief  it  did.  The  question  was  about  to  be  put,  when  all 
at  once  there  arose  from  one  corner  of  the  room  a  miserable 
woman.  She  was  thinly  clad,  and  her  appearance  indicated  the 
utmost  wretchedness,  and  that  her  mortal  career  was  almost 
closed.  After  a  moment  of  silence,  and  all  eyes  being  fixed  upon 
her,  she  stretched  her  attenuated  body  to  its  utmost  height,  and 
then  her  long  arms  to  their  greatest  length,  and  raising  her  voice 
to  a  shrill  pitch,  she  called  to  all  to  look  upon  her. 

"'Yes!'  she  said,  'look  upon  me,  and  then  hear  me.  All  that 
the  last  speaker  has  said  relative  to  temperate  drinking,  as  being 
the  father  of  drunkenness,  is  true.  All  practice,  all  experience, 
declares  its  truth.  All  drinking  of  alcoholic  poison,  as  a  beverage 
in  health,  is  excess.  Look  upon  me!  You  all  know  me,  or  once 
did.  You  all  know  I  was  once  the  mistress  of  the  best  farm  in  the 
town.  You  all  know,  too,  I  had  one  of  the  best  —  the  most  de- 
voted of  husbands.  You  all  know  I  had  fine,  noble-hearted,  indus- 
1  rions  boys.  Where  are  they  now?  Doctor,  where  are  they  now  ? 
You  all  know.  You  all  know  they  lie  in  a  row,  side  by  side,  in 
yonder  church-yard  ;  all  —  every  one  of  them  tilling  the  drunkard's 
grave!  They  were  all  taught  to  believe  that  temperate  drinking 
was  safe  —  that  excess  alone  ought  to  be  avoided;  and  they  never 


HIS   TEMPERANCE  "  BRIEF"  313 

acknowledged  excess.  They  quoted  you  and  you  and  you  (point- 
ing with  her  shred  of  a  finger  to  the  minister,  deacon,  and  doctor,) 
as  authority.  They  thought  themselves  safe  under  such  teachers. 
But  I  saw  the  gradual  change  coming  over  my  family  and  pros- 
pects, with  dismay  and  horror;  I  felt  we  were  all  to  be  over- 
whelmed in  one  common  ruin.  I  tried  to  ward  off  the  blow;  I 
tried  to  break  the  spell,  the  delusive  spell — in  which  the  idea  of 
the  benefits  of  temperate  drinking  had  involved  my  husband  and 
sons.  I  begged,  I  prayed ;  but  the  odds  were  against  me.  The 
minister  said  the  poison  that  was  destroying  my  husband  and  boys 
was  a  good  creature  of  God ;  the  deacon,  who  sits  under  the  pul- 
pit there,  and  took  our  farm  to  pay  his  rum  bills,  sold  them  the 
poison ;  the  doctor  said  that  a  little  was  good,  and  excess  only 
ought  to  be  avoided.  My  poor  husband  and  my  dear  boys  fell 
into  the  snare,  and  they  could  not  escape ;  and,  one  after  another, 
were  conveyed  to  the  sorrowful  grave  of  the  drunkard.  Now  look 
at  me  again.  You  probably  see  me  for  the  last  time.  My  sands 
have  almost  run.  I  have  dragged  my  exhausted  frame  from  my 
present  home — your  poor-house — to  warn  you  all ;  to  warn  you, 
deacon !  to  warn  you,  false  teacher  of  God's  word ! '  and  with  her 
arms  flung  high,  and  her  tall  form  stretched  to  its  utmost,  and  her 
voice  raised  to  an  unearthly  pitch,  she  exclaimed,  '  I  shall  soon 
stand  before  the  judgment  seat  of  God.  I  shall  meet  you  there, 
you  false  guides,  and  be  a  witness  against  you  all ! ' 

"  The  miserable  woman  vanished.  A  dead  silence  pervaded  the 
assembly ;  the  minister,  deacon,  and  physician  hung  their  heads ; 
and  when  the  president  of  the  meeting  put  the  question,  '  Shall 
any  licenses  be  granted  for  the  sale  of  spirituous  liquors  ? '  the 
unanimous  response  was  'No.'" 

Among  the  papers  which  Governor  Briggs  left,  is  one  of 
curious  interest,  as  constituting  his  "  brief"  for  his  argu- 
ments and  pleas  in  the  cause  of  temperance.  It  is  of  con- 
siderable extent,  and  embraces  memoranda  enough  to  stock 
an  army  of  champions,  going  forth  with  the  weapons  of 
logic  and  love,  against  the  dreadful  scourge  of  drunkenness. 

27 


314  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BR1GGS. 

A  few  quotations  will  serve  to  illustrate  its  value,  and  the 
author's  methodical  habits  of  preparation  for  his  labors  of 
love,  as  well  as  of  duty  :  — 

"Produces  three  fourths  of  the  pauperism  in  the  United  States. 

"  Of  992  inmates  of  the  Baltimore  jails  last  year,  944  were 
drunkards.  In  Hartford,  seven  eights.  Nine  tenths  of  the  crimes 
committed  are  caused  by  its  use. 

"Cost  of  crime  in  the  United  States,  is  $8,500,000  per  year; 
three  fourths  of  it  chargable  to  intemperance,  i.  e.  $6,375,000. 

"A  greater  proportion  of  the  suicides  and  violent  and  unnatural 
deaths  produced  by  the  same  cause. 

"Delirium  tremens  owes  its  existence  to  its  use.  Ten  cases  in 
one  week  in  Philadelphia. 

"  It  has  produced  30,000  deaths  annually  in  this  country.  Con- 
template this  evil.  Pills  the  land  with  widows,  with  orphans  and 
mourning. 

"A  drunkard's  grave  —  what  is  it? 

"  Aptly  compared  to  the  maelstrom  in  the  Northern  Seas;  the 
unsuspecting  seaman  dreams  not  of  his  danger  until  his  ship  is 
brought  within  the  fatal  influence  of  the  whirlpool.  He  gives  a 
scream  of  despair,  and  is  swallowed  up.  The  next  seen  is  the 
melancholy  wreck  disgorged  from  the  vortex,  and  floating  upon 
the  billows." 

So  conspicuous  and  efficient  were  the  labors  of  Governor 
Briggs  in  the  cause  of  temperance  —  especially  after  his 
retirement  from  public  office,  —  and  so  highly  were  his  zeal 
and  conscientiousness  in  this  great  work  appreciated,  by 
those  who  were  more  immediately  in  charge  of  its  organized 
forces  and  measures,  that  when,  in  1856,  Judge  Savage  re- 
signed his  important  post  as  President  of  the  American 
Temperance  Union,  no  one  was  thought  of  to  succeed  him 
before  him  who  had  in  Congress,  in  the  Governor's  seat, 
and  upon  the  Bench  for  a  quarter  of  a  century,  and  subse- 
quently for  several  years,  stood  foremost  among  the  advo- 


.  PRESIDENT  OF  AMERICAN  TEMPERANCE   UNION.       31 5 

cates  of  the  cause  it  was  designed  to  advance.  He  was 
chosen  President,  and  notwithstanding  he  lived  at  an  in- 
convenient distance  from  the  head-quarters  of  the  society, 
he  was  faithful  and  efficient  in  the  administration  of  its 
affairs — resigning  his  office  involuntarily,  only  with  his 
earthly  life. 

"  His  speech  at  the  Anniversary  in  1860,"  says  Mr.  Marsh,  "  on 
the  clangers  of  young  men  at  the  present  day,  will  not  be  soon  for- 
gotten. How  many  have  been  reformed  by  him  on  the  principles 
of  total  abstinence ;  how  many  turned  back  from  the  most  destruc- 
tive paths,  can  never  be  known  until  the  Judgment  Day." 

The  contemplation  of  no  one  aspect  merely  of  his  active 
and  invaluable  life,  suggests  more  impressively  the  benevo- 
lence and  breadth  of  his  humanity,  than  that  of  his  tem- 
perance labors.  In  these  he  was  indefatigable,  and  it  gave 
him  more  delight  to  lift  a  fellow-creature  out  of  the  mire 
of  degradation  —  out  of  the  "  slough  of  despair"  —  than  it 
did  to  win  applause  in  Congress,  or  in  any  public  position, 
by  the  force  of  either  talent  or  tact. 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 

HIS  HOME  AND  INNER  LIFE  —  LOVE  FOR  DOMESTIC  ANIMALS  —  HIS  SIMPLE 
TASTES  AND  SURROUNDINGS  —  HIS  LIBRARY  —  READING  HABITS — STUDY 
OF  THE  BIBLE  — HIS  RELIGIOUS  NATURE  — A  FILIAL  TRIBUTE  —  POWER 
OF  HIS  FIRESIDE  PRAYERS  —  HIS  HUMILITY  —  A  FRIEND'S  TESTIMONY  — 
TRIBUTES  AND  ANECDOTES —HIS  COURTESY  ILLUSTRATED  —  EXAMPLES  OF 
HIS  KINDNESS  —  A  SILENT  BENEFACTOR  —  HIS  BOUNTIES  TO  THE  POOR  — 
BROTHERLY  KINDNESS  —  POWER  OF  REPARTEE  —  WITTY  EXCUSE  FOR  NOT 
DANCING  —  PEACE-MAKING  —  PAT'S  OPINION  OF  HIM  —  A  PRACTICAL  JOKE 
WITH  A  JUG  — A  MISTAKE  OF  IDENTITY — FAMILY  REMINISCENCES. 

IITIERTO  we  have  followed  the  career  of  Governor 
Briggs,  as  he  passed  through  the  successive  periods 

f^  of  his  professional  and  official  life.  Glimpses  of 
him  in  private,  and  at  his  home,  have  been  all  we 
could  obtain,  so  brief  were  the  intervals  between 
his  public  labors.  For  this  reason,  we  have  not  yet  re- 
viewed his  true,  his  inner  life.  This  has  indeed,  ever  and 
anon,  gleamed  upon  us  out  of  his  letters,  and  out  of  the 
beautiful  memorials  from  time  to  time  offered  as  descrip- 
tions of  special  aspects  of  his  character. 

Something,  however,  is  yet  lacking,  and  that  something 
will  be  found,  when  it  is  supplied,  so  much  that,  without  it, 
these  Memoirs  would  be  like  the  statue  of  Memnon,  with- 
out the  music  wakened  by  the  magic  of  the  sunlight  on  the 
stone. 

Governor  Brisks  loved  his  home  and  evervthino-  around 
him  there  —  animate  and  inanimate.  His  warm  heart  had  a 
place  for  the  humblest  creature  dependent  upon  his  bounty. 
Not  his  horses  and  his  dog  alone  knew  his  voice,  and  would 

316 


HIS  LIBRARY— READING  HABITS.  317 

come  to  him  at  his  call,  but  the  cow  in  the  pasture  and  the 
fowls  of  the  yard  were  equally  familiar  ;  and  it  is  told  of 
him,  as  an  authentic  story,  that  his  Irish  serving  man  said 
to  him  one  day,  "  Please  your  honor,  I  have  put  back  the 
chickens  you  took  from  under  the  hen  ;  they  are  not  quite 
hatched  enough." 

The  home  he  occupied  during  the  last  nineteen  years  of  his 
life,  was  in  striking  contrast  to  the  "  little  green  house"  in 
Adams,  where  in  1818  he  commenced  his  domestic  life. 
Yet  were  his  memories  of  that  humble  dwelling-placS  made 
so  sweet  by  their  long  association  with  his  gentle,  genial, 
affectionate  nature,  that  they  always  had  a  brightness  and 
a  beauty  for  him,  which  the  multiplied  comforts  and  mod- 
erate luxuries  of  his  later  home,  did  not  somehow  seem  to 
surpass. 

He  was  always  simple  and  unostentatious,  and  his  home, 
though  ample  in  extent,  and  bountiful  in  all  respects,  was 
like  himself.  He  indulged  in  few  luxuries,  in  none,  indeed, 
that  were  other  than  true  conveniences  or  comforts.  There 
was  no  lavish  expenditure  upon  his  surroundings,  but  al- 
wa}Ts  enough  for  simple  and  natural,  and  even  tasteful 
adornment. 

His  favorite  retreat  was  his  library,  and  there  he  passed 
many  hours  of  grateful  meditation,  loving  remembrance, 
joyful  anticipation,  cheerful  intercourse  with  his  family  and 
friends,  instructive  converse  with  great  minds  mirrored  to 
him  in  books,  delightful  correspondence  with  the  absent, 
reverent  study  of  the  divine  word,  and  blessed  com- 
munion with  Heaven.  This  enumeration  may  not  exhaust, 
indeed,  his  occupations  and  delights  in  his  library,  but  on 
the  other  hand,  it  does  not  exaggerate  them. 

One  of  the   secrets  of  his  abundant  overflow  of  thought 

27* 


318  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

and  illustration  in  his  addresses  —  frequently  extempora- 
neous as  to  their  expression  —  was  the  diligence  of  his 
habit  of  reading.  His  home-library  contained  few  beside 
standard  books,  and  he  chose  the  sterling  authors  in  the- 
ology and  history  for  his  companions.  His  experience  and 
public  life  admirably  illustrated  the  apothegm  of  Bacon, 
"  Reading  makes  a  full  man."  He  read  to  some  purpose, 
both  in  his  intention,  and  in  the  result  of  his  reading. 

His  fondness  for  the  writings  of  Robert  Hall,  indicates 
the  character  of  his  theology  and  the  healthfulness  of  his 
rhetorical  tastes.  Macaulay  was  no  less  a  prime  favorite 
with  him,  and  one  of  his  incomparable  essa}Ts  was  the  last 
reading,  out  of  his  Bible,  which  he  is  remembered  to  have 
pursued.  He  marked  the  essay,  which  was  that  on  the 
"West  Indies,  and  the  Social  and  Industrial  Capacity  of 
the  Negro,"  with  marginal  notes  and  comments  of  great 
sagacity. 

He  was  a  devout  student  of  the  Scriptures,  and  carried 
into  the  Bible  class  and  into  the  social  religious  meeting 
the  "  beaten  oil"  which  he  himself  had  wrought  out  in  his 
library  and  in  his  closet.  Much  devotional  reading,  besides, 
enlivened  and  strengthened  his  religious  character  —  of 
which,  through  all  his  life,  he  never  made  a  pretentious 
show,  and  equally  never  glossed  or  veiled  it  from  a  sense 
of  false  and  feeble  shame. 

His  was  a  cheerful,  sunny  nature,  subject  to  exceptional 
moods  of  despondency,  which  now  and  then  tinged  his  re- 
ligious experience  with  a  gentle  melancholy,  but  rarely,  if 
ever,  availed  to  mar  it  with  persistent  gloom.  He  was 
self-depreciating  by  nature  and  habit,  and  nowhere  was 
this  more  apparent  than  in  his  Christian  life,  of  which  the 
model  before  him  was   so  lofty  and  so  sublime  —  that  he 


A    FILIAL    TRIBUTE.  319 

magnified  his  short-comings  to  the  proportions  of  his 
spiritual  ambitions,  and  by  a  gentle  perversity  of  spirit 
looked  at  his  actual  attainments  in  the  divine  life  through 
the  wrong  end  of  the  telescope,  with  which  he  yet  never 
failed,  by  a  right  use  of  it,  to  bring  heavenly  things  nigh 
to  him. 

His  home-life  was  beautiful  for  simplicity  and  sincerity, 
in  every  sphere  of  duty  —  domestic,  parental,  and  Chris- 
tian. Once  and  again  the  reader  has  gazed  upon  some 
of  its  manifestations,  and  the  husband,  the  father,  the 
neighbor,  the  Christian,  has  been  revealed  in  these  pages. 

Of  the  memories  of  the  departed  father  held  sacred  by 
his  children,  certainly  none  are  more  fondly  cherished  than 
those  which  cluster  about  the  domestic  altar.  One  of  those 
children  says,  — 

"  His  daily  prayers  at  the  household  altar  were  always  charac- 
terized by  earnest  asking  for  wisdom  and  direction  from  God. 
The  memory  of  those  prayers,  so  full  of  true  worship,  of  gratitude 
and  love,  and  humble  confession  of  sin,  and  fervid  desire  for  the 
blessing  of  Heaven,  lingers  with  us  still,  like  sweet  incense  in  our 
dwelling;  and  the  tones  of  the  full,  rich,  reverent  voice,  do  not 
cease  to  our  souls.  When  we  kneeled  with  him  in  the  devotions 
of  the  family,  we  often  marked  the  constant  prayer  for  preparation 
for  death,  and  acceptance  in  heaven.  He  seldom  failed  to  pray 
that  we  might  '  live  the  life  of  the  righteous,  and  die  his  peaceful 
death.'  " 

One  memorable  incident  connected  with  his  prayers  at 
the  fireside,  though  reaching  back  into  his  Lanesboro'  life, 
may  well  find  its  record  here. 

A  young  student  of  Williams  College  was  teaching 
school  in  the  village.  Writh  amiable  qualities  of  character 
he   united   skeptical   feelings    on   the  subject  of  personal 


320  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

religion.  Yet  he  was  inclined  to  visit  Mr.  Briggs  at  his 
home ;  and  the  latter  said  to  him,  with  his  characteristic 
kindness,  "  If  you  find  it  pleasant  here,  make  nry  house  a 
home." 

The  }Toung  man  was  often  there,  and  not  infrequently  at 
the  time  of  the  lifting  up  of  the  evening  sacrifice,  when  he 
listened  to  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  and  to  the  simple, 
earnest  supplications  of  the  head  of  the  family.  Some  time 
afterwards,  he  said  to  a  young  friend  :  "I  have  heard  Mr. 
Briggs  in  court  and  in  public,  where  human  ambition  and 
the  love  of  applause  might  influence  him  ;  but  to  see  him 
in  the  quiet  of  his  own  home,  shut  out  from  the  world,  with 
his  wife  and  children,  on  bended  knees,  offering  prayer  in 
Christian  faith,  staggers  me.  I  cannot  answer  that.  He 
is  sincere.  He  is  not  deluded.  There  must  be  something 
in  it."  For  many  years  that  }'Oung  man,  in  mature  life, 
has  bowed  with  his  wife  and  children  at  their  own  family 
altar,  in  an  intelligent  Christian  faith. 

Any  portraiture  of  Governor  Briggs,  in  which  the  meek- 
ness of  his  soul  and  of  his  temper  —  his  Christian  humility 
in  another  phrase  —  is  not  made  prominent,  must  fail  in 
fidelity  to  its  original.  He  was  all  his  life  a  man  of  that 
lowliness  of  heart  which  may  have  simulations,  but  can 
scarcely  be  found  genuine,  apart  from  a  truly  Christian 
character. 

His  frequent  and  almost  painful  self-depreciation  in  his 
retrospection  was  not  altogether  —  perhaps  not  chiefly  — 
morbid  in  its  origin.  It  was  the  result  of  his  habitual  and 
unaffected  humility.  He  literally,  in  obedience  to  apos- 
tolic injunction,  "  esteemed  others  better  than  himself." 
One  of  his  last  utterances  was  of  this  nature :  "  I  have 
done  nothing  ;    I  have   done   nothing."     It  is  difficult  to 


A   FRIEND'S   TESTIMONY.  321 

reach  that  stand-point  from  which  he  could  thus  see  him- 
self. These  words,  and  his  kindred  expressions,  in  his  let- 
ters, of  the  ineffectualness  of  his  life,  are  to  be  estimated 
in  connection  with  the  loftiness  of  the  ideals  he  cherished. 
He  aimed  so  high,  that  the  loftiest  reaches  he  compassed 
seemed  to  ha^e  no  elevation,  when  compared  with  the 
heights  unsealed  above  them. 

The  humility  of  a  truly  lofty  character  is  its  own  veil 
only.  To  others  it  is  an  interpretation,  an  exponent  of  the 
unconcealed  stature.  It  is  impossible  not  to  see  the  moral 
and  spiritual  greatness  of  Governor  Briggs,  in  the  reflec- 
tions of  his  life,  which  to  him,  undoubtedly,  seemed  the 
images  of  feebleness  and  failure. 

The  meekness  of  his  soul  lent  a  rare  gentleness  of  ex- 
pression to  his  features  —  which  were  not,  however,  desti- 
tute of  a  dignity  and  strength,  —  blending  into  an  impressive 
charm  at  all  times,  but  chiefly  when  he  was  wrapt  in 
thought,  or  moved  with  the  passion  of  impetuous  utterance. 
He  might  have  been  singled  out  of  a  group  of  intellectual 
men,  by  the  sign  in  his  face  of  unpretendingness.  In  ampli- 
fication of  this  point  is  the  testimony  of  a  friend  :  — 

"  Among  the  dignitaries  in  the  uppermost  seats  at  Harvard  Com- 
mencement, you  might,  for  successive  years,  have  easily  singled 
out  the  Governor,  as  distinguished  by  the  absence  of  all  preten- 
sion in  his  looks ;  not  that  he  had  not,  otherwise,  a  commanding 
presence,  for  this  he  assuredly  possessed,  but  it  was  such  a 
presence  of  benignity,  removed  from  pride  and  vainglory,  as  im- 
pressed all  who  came  within  the  circle  of  his  influence.  It  was  so 
interwoven  into  the  fibres  of  his  character,  that  its  outward  ex- 
pression was  as  natural  as  his  walk.  It  tempered  the  look  of  his 
blue  eye,  marked  the  smile  on  his  face,  and  made  him  ever  serene, 
self-poised,  ever  equable,  drew  to  him  the  affections  of  good  men, 
nay,  even,  children,  and  stamped  on  him  the  impress  which  comes 


322  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BR1GGS. 

from  no  doubtful  source,  of  one  '  meek  and  lowly  in  heart.'  In  his 
case,  at  least,  was  illustrated  the  truth,  that  'before  honor  is 
humility.'  " 

It  was  this  unaffected  simplicity  of  his  soul,  out-shining 
through  his  mild  blue  ej^es,  and  the  unavoidable  conviction 
of  the  truth  of  his  character,  that  immediately  won  the 
heart  of  the  stranger  brought  into  close  contact  with  him, 
and  that  with  still  greater  force  bound  to  him  those  who 
knew  the  depths  and  breadths  of  his  benevolence  :  — 

" Hardly  a  stranger  came  to  our  village,"  says  Dr.  Todd,  "but 
was  anxious,  at  least,  to  see  Governor  Briggs  for  a  moment ;  and 
I  know  not  how  often  I  have  piloted  them  over  to  his  house  to 
introduce  them,  sometimes  fearing  he  would  feel,  if  he  did  not 
say,  '  My  friend,  this  is  a  little  too  much.'  But  I  never  knew  him 
fail  to  give  a  warm  and  welcome  reception,  and  never  had  one  go 
back  with  me  who  did  not  say,  in  substance,  '  What  a  beautiful 
character ! ' " 

A  good  man,  only  a  few  hours  before  he,  himself,  passed 
into  eternity,  said  of  hhn  :  — 

"  How  much  like  Jesus !  more  like  Him  than  any  man  I  ever 
knew.  How  much  I  love  him !  I  thank  God  that  I  have  known 
one  such  man." 

This  is  the  language  of  another,  who  knew  him  well :  — 

"He  really  loved  everybody  in  such  a  manner,  that  he  always 
felt  kind  and  generous  and  pitiful.  I  have  known  him  intimately 
many  years  at  home  and  abroad,  and  I  never  knew  him  speak  un- 
kindly of  a  human  being.  He  had,  by  nature,  a  quick,  sensitive 
temper,  and  yet  I  never  saw  him  in  a  passion,  and  I  do  not  be- 
lieve he  ever  was.  I  presume  he  never  had  a  quarrel  in  his  life, 
and  a  gentleman  who  was  a  member  of  his  Executive  Council  sev- 
eral years,  says  '  The  perfectly  unruffled  amiability  and  suavity  of 


HIS  KINDNESS.  323 

his  manner  and  temper  during  the  tedious  and  wearisome,  and 
sometimes  excessively  trying  hours  in  the  Council  Chamber,  where 
nerves  and  wisdom  are  severely  tested,  were  marvellous.' " 

"  It  was  my  good  fortune,"  writes  one  eager  to  bring  a  stone  for 
his  monument,  "to  make  his  acquaintance  soon  after  the  Guberna- 
torial election,  at  the  house  of  one  of  his  warmest  friends,  Hon. 
Heman  Lincoln,  and  in  all  my  subsequent  interviews  I  never 
parted  from  him.  without  feeling  all  the  better  impulses  of  my 
nature  stirred  within  me,  to  try  to  imitate  his  spotless  example. 
The  Scripture  says,  '  When  a  man's  ways  please  the  Lord,  He 
maketh  even  his  enemies  to  be  at  peace  with  him.'  The  truth  of 
this  he  fully  exemplified.  Enemies  he  had  not,  even  among  his 
political  opponents." 

His  good  nature  was  proverbial,  and  his  politeness  in  all 
circumstances  exemplary.  It  was  the  courtesy  of  kind- 
ness, of  a  great  and  yet  gentle  heart.  His  kind  acts  were 
doubly  kind,  by  reason  of  his  manner  in  doing  them.  Of 
his  charities  the  stream  was  perpetual.  This  is  no  exag- 
geration. In  little  things  and  in  large  things,  he  mani- 
fested the  spirit  of  his  Master,  and  "  went  about  doing 
good." 

His  daughter  narrates  this  instance  of  his  kindness  in 
little  things  :  — 


o 


"  Going  to  the  village,  on  a  frosty  morning,  late  in  the  autumn, 
he  overtook  a  little  boy  on  the  way.  He  was  barefooted.  My 
father  stopped  the  carryall,  and  asked  the  little  fellow  to  ride. 
When  he  had  comfortably  taken  his  seat  beside  him,  my  father  not 
knowing  who  he  was,  asked  his  name.  He  rather  reluctantly 
answered, 

"  '  My  name  is  just  like  yours.' 

<"  What  is  that  ? ' 

" '  George  N.  Briggs,"  was  the  answer.  He  took  the  boy  to  a  shop 
and  fitted  him  with  a  pair  of  boots  and  stockings,  giving  the  little 
pedestrian  a  more  comfortable  walk  on  his  return  home,  than  he 


324  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  K.  BRIGGS. 

expected.     This  incident  came  to  my  knowledge  with  others  of  a 
similar  character,  after  his  deeds  of  love  on  earth  were  ended." 

A  colored  woman,  employed  in  his  family  when  she  was 
young,  relates  this  simple  story  of  his  recent  kindness  to 
her :  — 

"  The  last  time  I  saw  Mr.  Briggs,  was  down  street,  last  sum- 
mer. It  was  a  very  warm  day,  and  I  had  walked  down  from  Lanes- 
boro',  and  felt  very  warm  and  tired;  and  I  suppose  he  saw  I  was, 
for  after  he  saw  me  he  spoke  to  me  so  pleasant,  and  shook  hands 
and  said,  '  Lucy,  don't  you  want  some  soda?  '  I  said  it  would  taste 
good,  and  he  took  me  into  a  store  and  gave  me  a  glass  of  soda 
and  some  cake,  and  I  had  such  a  good  time !  I  never  saw  him 
after." 

Here  is  another  of  these  little  kindnesses  :  — 

4 

"  Standing  in  the  barber's  shop  of  the  village,  one  day,  he  saw 
a  colored  girl  passing  by,  on  her  way  to  attend  a  funeral.  She 
was  overtaken  by  a  sudden  shower,  and  was  getting  very  wet. 
Without  saying  a  word,  he  stepped  out  of  the  door,  placed  his 
umbrella  in  her  hand,  and  returned  to  the  shop.  Some  one  in 
speaking  of  it  afterwards,  said,  '  Anybody  could  have  doue  that.' 
'  Yes,'  said  Dr.  Todd,  '  but  only  Governor  Briggs  did  do  it.' " 

An  example  less  of  his  small  kindnesses  than  of  his  silent 
benefactions,  —  those  gracious  deeds  done  by  the  right 
hand  without  the  knowledge  of  the  left,  —  is  this  incident : 

"  A  clergyman  whom  he  very  highly-esteemed  was  unexpectedly 
cut  short  in  his  income.  The  Governor,  upon  ascertaining  this 
fact,  sent  an  order  to  his  tailor  to  select  the  materials  and  make  a 
suit  of  clothes  for  his  friend,  with  strict  injunctions  to  send  them 
to  him  without  the  least  intimation  of  the  source  whence  they 
came.  The  clergyman  must  have  guessed;  but  no  allusion  to  it 
was  ever  made  by  him,  until  his  friend  was  laid  in  the  grave." 


BROTHERLY  KIXDJSTESS.  325 

Of  much  greater  breadth,  and  truly  memorable  for  its 
extent  and  duration,  is  one  of  his  secret  bounties  to  the  poor 
of  his  Tillage,  disclosed  to  us  only  since  his  death,  by  the 
admiring  friend  who  was  his  almoner.  This  friend  was  for 
many  years  the  principal  baker  in  the  village ;  and  his 
business  brought  him  into  close  acquaintance  with  the 
people.  To  him  Governor  Briggs,  for  several  years,  never 
failed  to  say,  just  before  "  Thanksgiving  :  "  — 

"  See  that  all  the  poor  families  in  the  village  who  are  not  able, 
in  your  judgment,  to  provide  it  for  themselves,  are  supplied  with 
everything  necessary  to  a  nice  and  bountiful  dinner,  from  a  tur- 
key, or  fowls,  to  a  dessert  and  tea  and  sugar,  and  be  sure  let  none 
of  them  know  who  sends  it.  When  all  is  done,  send  the  bill  to  me, 
and  I  will  give  you  my  check  for  the  amount." 

i 

"  This,"  says  our  informer,  "  was  faithfully  done,  until 

I  left  the  business." 

Incidents  illustrating  his  brotherly  kindness,  and  his 
recognition  of  the  sweet  fraternal  spirit  of  the  gospel,  are 
very  numerous  :  — 

"  I  think  I  should  never  have  been  a  member  of  the  church,  had 
it  not  been  for  Governor  Briggs,"  said  a  plain,  laboring  man.  "  I 
came  to  this  town  a  stranger,  years  ago.  On  Sundays  I  wandered 
about,  not  going  to  any  church,  because  I  knew  nobody.  One 
Sunday,  I  thought  I  would  go  to  the  Baptist  Church.  It  was  the 
old  building,  and  the  people  sat  facing  the  door.  I  opened  the 
door,  and,  seeing  all  the  faces  turned  towards  me,  was  about  to 
close  it  and  go  back,  when  I  saw  a  kind-looking  man  with  gray 
hair,  beckoning  me  with  his  hand  to  come  in.  I  went  in  and  sat  by 
his  side.  I  came  again  next  Sunday ;  and,  when  I  opened  the  door, 
he  again  beckoned  me  to  him ;  and  it  was  a  long  time  before  I 
knew  that  the  gray-headed  man  was  the  Governor.  I  found  my- 
self going  every  Sunday,  that  I  might  sit  beside  him.  He  gave  me 
28 


326  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

a  hymn-book  soon  after.  Ah !  I  feel  sure  I  should  not  have  been 
here  had  it  not  been  for  him." 

"  The  last  act  he  did  in  health,"  says  his  daughter,  "  was  to  take 
to  their  friends,  in  his  own  carriage,  two  women  who  had  been 
thrown  from  their  vehicle,  as  they  were  driving  down  the  hill  near 
his  dwelling.  On  his  return,  when  he  drove  into  his  yard,  a  few 
minutes  before  that  melancholy  occurrence  which  ended  his  life,  a 
member  of  his  household  said  to  herself,  when  she  saw  him  come 
in :  '  What  a  good  man  that  is.'  " 

"He  excelled,"  says  Dr.  Todd,  "  ire  conversation,  and  seemed  to 
be  the  centre  of  the  charmed  circle  wherever  he  went.  In  his 
anecdotes,  in  which  he  excelled  all  men  I  ever  knew,  he  never  so  id 
a  severe  or  a  wounding  word.  He  would  first  paint  the  man  so 
that  he  stood  out  before  you,  and  then  give  you  his  words,  and 
most  likely  his  very  tones  of  voice,  to  your  great  delight.  You 
never  forgot  a  story  that  he  told." 

To  this  testimony  to  his  conversational  powers,  it  may 
be  justly  added- that  he  excelled  in  repartee.  A  ready  and 
delicate  humor  marked  his  utterances  whenever  the  occa- 
sion justified  it ;  although  no  man  was  more  mindful  than 
he  of  the  propriety  of  his  words.  In  illustration  of  his 
felicity  in  retort  —  which  was  always  with  him  "  the  retort 
courteous,"  —  the  following  instance  maybe  quoted,  from 
reminiscences  furnished  by  one  who  was  for  some  years  his 
pastor : 1  — 

"Being  rallied  by  a  neighbor  on  the  fact  that  the  vane  on  the 
Baptist  Church  did  not  correctly  indicate  the  direction  of  the  wind, 
he  instantly  replied :  '  That  is  true ;  but  then  you  know  we  Bap- 
tists do  not  turn  at  every  wind  of  doctrine.'  " 

Spending  an  evening  at- the  house  of  a  friend  in  the  city, 
before  the  company  retired,  some  one  proposed  dancing, 

1  Rev.  J.  V.  Ambler. 


PEACE  MAKING.  327 

and  the  movement  was  adopted.     Presently  a  young  lady 
came  forward,  and  very  respectfully  said,  — 

"  Governor  Briggs,  may  I  have  the  pleasure  of  dancing 
with  you  ?  " 

He  immediately  said,  with  his  pleasant  smile,  "  It  has 
been  currently  reported,  that,  on  a  similar  occasion,  I 
invited  a  young  lad}'  to  dance  with  me,  but  she  declined 
because  I  was  the  son  of  a  blacksmith.  I  acknowledge  the 
anvil,"  said  he,  "  but  I  deny  the  pumps  ;  for  I  never  danced 
in  my  life  ;  —  besides,  I  am  a  Baptist,  and,  as  a  people,  we 
are  not  especially  favorable  to  this  practice,  for  the  first 
account  given  in  the  Bible  of  a  Baptist,  informs  us  that  he 
lost  his  head  in  connection  with  a  dancing-party." 

This  chapter  has  run  so  much  to  reminiscences  of  the 
good  man  gone  from  earth,  that  it  may  not  be  amiss,  per- 
haps, to  extend  this  vein  yet  a  little  more,  and  embrace  a 
few  anecdotes  which,  while  they  may  not  directly  relate  to 
those  characteristics  specially  under  review,  will  yet  add 
something  to  the  reader's  knowledge  of  his  many-sided 
nature,  and  also  of  the  foundations  of  his  great  personal 
popularity  wherever  he  was  known. 

He  was  pre-efl&inently,  as  his  early  life  abundantly  illus- 
trates, a  promoter  of  peace,  and  to  the  last  of  his  public 
services,  whether  in  the  sphere  of  the  world  or  in  that  of 
the  church,  he  labored  to  restore  concord  and  unity. 

"  Walking  one  clay  from  his  residence  to  the  village,  he  heard 
high  words  from  a  house  by  the  wayside,  and  as  he  approached  it, 
he  saw  a  woman  in  the  door-yard,  crying  bitterly,  and  apparently 
much  distressed.  In  his  pleasant  way,  he  asked,  '  What  is  the 
trouble  ? ' 

"  She  replied,  '  My  husband  has  put  me  out  of  the  house,  and 
won't  let  me  come  in.' 

28 


328  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BR1GGS. 

"  He  walked  past  her,  and  went  to  the  door,  and,  after  rapping 
two  or  three  times,  was  received  by  the  man  in  possession  with  a 
very  bland  countenance,  though  a  little  confused. 

"  '  What  appears  to  be  the  matter  here  ?  '  asked  the  Governor. 

"  '  Oh,  nothing  —  nothing,'  was  the  reply. 

"  '  Why,  the  woman  seems  to  be  out  of  doors,  and  she  is  crying.' 

"  '  Yes ;  but  she  can  come  in,  if  she  wants  to.' 

"  '  Well,  suppose  you  ask  her  to  come  in?  ' 

"The  party  in  power  invited  the  ejected  woman  to  come  in; 
and,  the  difficulty  thus  far  adjusted,  the  Governor  passed  on  to  the 
village.  A  neighbor  related  this  account  some  time  afterward, 
adding,  '  Nine  out  of  ten  would  have  passed  on  and  done  nothing ; 
and  I  have  never  heard  any  more  high  words  from  that  quarter 
since.'  " 

The  next  incident  shows  the  estimation  in  which  he  was 
held  by  the  laboring  classes,  with  whom  he  was  frequently 
in  contact :  — 

"Two  Irishmen  were  passing  a  Daguerrian  shop,  where  at  the 
window  hung  an  excellent  likeness  of  Governor  Briggs.  They 
stopped  to  look  at  it. 

"  'Sure  as  me  soul,'  said  one,  'that's  Governor  Briggs.  He 
was  a  good  man,  and  a  raal  frind  to  the  poor.  If  iver  a  man  gits 
square  into  heaven,  it's  this  same.' 

"  'Yis,  it's  ivery  word  of  it  thrue;  but,^Pat,  wasn't  he  a 
hiritic  ? ' 

"  'I'll  dare  say  he  was;  but  he  had  the  thrue  religion  in  him, 
afther  all ;  and  Saint  Pater,  as  I  am  thinking,  won't  mind  be  ask- 
ing what  he  was,  when  he  opens  the  door  to  let  him  in.'  " 

One  whose  communications  with  him  up  to  the  last  of 
life  were  constant  and  intimate,  and  who  saj^s  it  "  sets  his 
head  in  a  whirl,"  to  begin  to  call  up  the  interesting  remi- 
niscences of  him  which  his  own  intercourse  suggests,  re- 
lated only  3Testerday,  the  following  amusing  account  of  a 
practical  joke  which  he  plaj-ed  upon  him.     In  this  sort  of 


A   MISTAKE  OF  IDEXTITY.  329 

affair,  the  Governor,  he  says,  was  a  match  for  any  one,  and 
gave  or  took  with  equal  zest. 

He  was  summoned  one  summer  morning,  by  the  Gov- 
ernor, to  accompany  him  and  his  guests  to  West  Pond 
(not  far  from  the  village),  for  a  boating  and  fishing  ex- 
cursion. Unable  to  go  with  them  at  the  time,  he  promised 
to  join  them  there,  and  at  eleven  o'clock  he  drove  to  the 
pond.  The  party  was  out  with  the  boat  on  the  opposite 
shore,  but  the  Governor  was  stretched  ont,  fast  asleep  near 
the  carriages,  not  literally  "  sub  tegmine  fagi"  but  still 
under  a  spreading  elm. 

In  a  moment,  he  says,  he  thought  of  the  lunch  in  the 
cart,  and  found  there  a  gallon  stone  jug  of  milk,  which  he 
set  down  close  by  the  Governor's  head,  and  retreated  rapid- 
ly to  join  the  boat  party  by  making  a  detour.  Presently 
he  landed  with  them,  without  having  said  a  word  to  any  one 
of  his  trick,  and  the  merriment  was  unbounded  when  the 
proximity  of  the  suspicious  looking  jug  to  the  mouth  of 
the  sleeping  dignitary  was  perceived.  It  woke  him  from 
his  slumber,  and  speedily  comprehending  "  the  situation," 
but  without  seeing  the  author  of  the  joke,  he  joined  in  the 
glee,  exclaiming,  "Ah!  that  fellow  D.,  is  around  here,  I 
know ! " 

The  following  reminiscence,  by  his  daughter,  presents  an 
amusing  instance  of  a  mistake  of  identity  :  — 

"  On  one  of  his  early  visits  to  Boston,  after  his  election,  before 
he  was  much  known  personally,  he  went  as  usual  to  the  barber's, 
and  found  among  others  who  were  receiving  the  attention  re- 
quired, one  of  his  townsmen  from  Pittsfleld.  to  whom  the  chief 
employee  was  paying  most  obsequious  and  marked  service,  while 
he,  after  waiting  a  while,  was  given  over  to  the  inexperience  of  a 
novice  in  the  art,  and  subjected  to  the  infliction  of  a  dull  razor. 
28* 


330  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

He  bore  it  patiently,  however,  while  his  neighbor,  who  had  not 
discovered  him,  was  luxuriating  in  all  sybarite  elegances  of  that 
portion  of  his  morning  toilet.  After  the  neighbor  had  taken  his 
leave,  the  barber,  turning  to  the  Governor,  said,  '  Do  you  know 
who  that  gentleman  is  ? ' 

"  '  Why  ?  did  he  not  pay  you  ? ' 

"  '  Oh,  yes,  to  be  sure  ;  that  is  Governor  Briggs,'  said  the  knight 
of  the  razor,  who  had  enjoyed  the  imagined  honor  of  shaving  that 
individual. 

"  '  Xo  ;  I  know  that  man,  and  he  is  not  Governor  Briggs  —  that  is 
Mr.  M.,  of  Pittsfleld.' 

"  The  next  time  the  Governor  met  his  neighbor,  he  told  him  the 
joke  was  very  good  for  him,  but  rather  sorry  work  for  himself,  and 
hereafter,  though  he  should  not  object  to  his  being  well  tonsured, 
he  should  not  allow  his  own  beard  to  be  torn  out  by  a  rusty  razor, 
on  his  account." 

The  following  reminiscences  are  from  the  home  treasury, 
which  could  not  readily  be  exhausted  :  — 

"  He  had  in  his  possession  several  walking-canes,  the  gifts  of 
various  friends,  which  he  valued  highly  as  tokens  of  kindly  regard, 
though  he  never  used  them.  One  of  them  made  of  a  shepherd's 
crook,  was  sent  to  him  by  Mr.  Benjamin,  the  missionary,  who  cut 
it  for  him  on  Mt.  Parnassus.1  One,  wrought  out  of  whalebone, 
was  a  gift  of  General  Thompson,  of  Xew  Bedford.  Two  were  pre- 
sented to  him  by  Southern  members  of  Congress  —  Mr.  Sevier  of 
Arkansas,  and  Mr.  Donnely  of  Florida.  One  (from  the  'old  oak' 
at  Mt.  Auburn)  the  love  and  memory  of  Amos  Lawrence,  made 
precious ;  and  one  was  brought  to  him  by  Mr.  Bauvard,  which  he 
cut  on  the  Mount  of  Olives.  He  told  my  father  that  'he  thought 
of  him,  while  he  was  there.'  When  showing  it  to  me  soon  after 
he  received  it,  and  expressing  great  satisfaction  in  its  possession, 
and  its  pleasing  evidence  of  remembrance,  he  repeated  what  Mr. 
Banvard  had  said,  and  then,  his  eyes  suffused  with  tears,  added, 
reverently  and  tenderly,  •  Another  Being  thought  of  me  there.'" 

1  See  his  letter  of  acknowledgment  in  Chapter  XVI. 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 


ONE  OF  HIS  BENEFICIARIES  —  A  LETTER  LAID  UP  AS  A  JEWEL  —  JAXE  HAR- 
RISON'S STORY  AS  TOLD  BY  A  FRIEND  —  HIS  LETTER  UPON  HER  DEATH  — 
HIS  DAUGHTER'S  POSTSCRIPT  —  ANECDOTES  OF  HIS  KINDNESS — REMI- 
NISCENCES BY  "  GODFREY  GREYLOCK  "  —  VISITS  TO  A  BLIND  "  BROTHER." 


N  an  earlier  chapter  of  these  Memoirs,  an  allusion  was 
made  to  a  poor  sick  girl,  who  was  a  grateful  bene- 
ficiary of  Governor  Briggs's  kindness.  Her  character 
was  so  attractive,  and  her  patience  in  poverty  and 
pain  so  beautiful,  that  scarcely  less  to  present  exem- 
plary lessons  from  her  life  and  death,  than  to  exemplify 
yet  further  the  loving  kindness  of  him  who  befriended  her, 
a  few  pages  will  be  devoted  to  some  simple  memorials  of 
their  relation  to  each^other. 

So  far  as  his  ministries  to  her  bodily  needs,  or  indeed  to  her 
spiritual  nature  are  concerned,  her  case  is  .not  an  exceptional 
oue.  It  is  only  in  the  degree  of  those  attentions,  and  in 
those  personal  characteristics  in  their  object,  which  made 
them  so  impossible  to  withhold,  that  it  becomes  peculiar. 

Jane  Harrison  lived  in  Pittsfield,  in  very  humble  circum- 
stances. She  was  the  eldest  daughter  of  a  poor  widow. 
She  had  a  younger  sister  who  was  too  feeble  for  work,  and 
their  mother  was  ill,  like  the  daughter,  with  only  a  tardier 
phase  of  her  malady. 

Jane  did  not  belong  to  the  denomination  with  which 
Governor  Briggs  was  connected,  but  her  sincere  piety,  her 
sweet  patience,   her    gentle   spirit,  and    her  poor  earthly 

331 


332  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE   N.  BRIGGS. 

estate  were  quite  as  sure  passports  to  bis  warm  catholic 
heart  as  any  closer  church  kinship  could  possibly  be. 

These  lines  of  the  biographer  are  designed  only  to  intro- 
duce her  to  the  reader.  A  skilful  hand  has  before  pre- 
pared the  pages  which  her  story  will  fill.  In  advance  of 
that,  however,  she  shall  speak  for  herself  in  a  letter  which 
she  wrote  to  her  benefactor,  while  he  was  long  absent  from 
home.  This  letter  was  found  after  his  death,  in  one  of  his 
private  drawers,  together  with  a  flower,  painted,  it  is  sup- 
posed, by  her  hand,  and  both  inclosed  in  an  envelope,  upon 
which  he  had  written  —  "Jewels."  Other  treasures  were 
laid-up  in  the  same  drawer ;  the  exquisite  gold  medal  he 
received  in  Washington,  and  a  silk  purse,  the  handiwork 
of  Laura  Bridgeman,  and  by  her  presented  to  him.  The 
letter  which  follows,  was  written  in  a  singularly  delicate 
and  dainty  style,  almost  as  etherealized  as  the  spirit  which 
inspired  its  thought  and  feeling :  — 

Pittsfield,  Feb.  13,  1843. 
Dear  Sir  : 

It  seems  a  long  time  since  you  left  us.  I  meant  to  have  written 
before  this  time,  but  have  been  prevented.  I  would  now  write 
you  a  few  lines  to  let  you  know  I  have  not  forgotten  you  —  for  I 
shall  never  forget  all  your  kindness  to  us.  I  have  not  been  as  well 
for  a  few  weeks.  About  three  weeks  ago  I  had  the  hiccoughs.  I 
began -to  have  them  on  Friday  night,  and  had  them  almost  con- 
stantly till  Sabbath  morning.  I  have  not  had  them  since,  but  have 
not  been  as  well  as  I  was  before.  My  cough  has  been  worse.  I 
have  not  raised  much  lately.  I  always  feel  best  when  I  do.  I  am 
able  to  sit  up  nearly  half  the  time,  and  walk  about  some.  My 
pulse  is  the  same  it  has  always  been.  Doctor  called  to  see  me  the 
other  day.  He  said  it  was  faster,  by  twenty,  than  it  ought  to  be. 
I  have  thought  of  trying  to  ride  out,  but  the  doctor  tells  me  I 
must  keep  out  of  the  air  as  much  as  I  can.  I  am  in  hopes  that  if 
I  live  till  spring,  I  shall  be  more  comfortable,  but  I  don't  know 


A   LETTER  LAID    UP  AS  A   JEWEL.  ZZo 

how  it  will  turn.  I  know  I  must  die,  but  I  feel  it  matters  not  much 
when  the  time  comes,  if  I  am  prepared  to  go.  If  I  can  bid  fare- 
well to  earth,  with  the  prospect  of  a  better,  brighter  world  beyond 
the  grave.  I  feel  that  it  is  better  to  die  now,  than  to  live  till  old 
age,  in  a  world  full  of  storms.  I  know  the  grave  is  dark,  but  I 
know,  too,  that  light  will  break  through  its  gloom,  and  I  know 
that  though  the  body  shall  mingle  with  the  dust  of  the  earth,  it 
shall  rise  again,  that  the  spirit  shall  once  more  inhabit  it,  and  if  it 
is  a  redeemed  spirit,  be  clothed  in  a  garment  of  light  and  blessed- 
ness, and  live  forever  in  a  world  where  sickness  and  death  shall 
never  come.  We  have  all  got  along  very  comfortably  this  winter. 
The  worst  trouble  we  have  is  about  a  place  to  live  in  another  year. 
My  brother  is  to  pay  the  rent  till  the  first  of  April,  but  I  do  not 
expect  he  will  help  any  longer  than  that.  We  can  have  the  rooms 
up  stairs ;  they  are  very  comfortable,  and  I  think  we  shall  go  up 
there,  if  we  can  manage  to  pay  the  rent.  We  cannot  stay  below, 
the  rent  is  so  high.  I  do  not  know  how  we  shall  get  along,  but 
when  I  think  how  long  I  have  been  sick,  and  how  we  have  been 
provided  for  by  means  unknown  to  us,  I  feel  that  a  kind  Provi- 
dence will  still  take  care  of  us,  though  it  be  in  ways  unthought  of 
now.  I  hope  I  shall  live  till  your  return ;  I  want  to  see  you  once 
more.  I  always  think  of  you  Sabbath  mornings,  and  it  seems 
very  lonesome  not  to  have  you  come.  I  have  written  a  few  lines, 
and  I  hope,  in  return,  you  will  write  me  a  long  letter.  Mother  and 
Nancy  send  their  respects  to  you  and  your  family.  Give  my  re- 
spects to  your  family,  and  tell  them  if  I  never  see  them  in  this 
world,  I  hope  to  meet  them  in  a  world  where  there  will  be  no 

more  parting. 

Yours  with  respect, 

Jaxe  Harrison. 
Here  follows  the  sketch  alluded  to  :  — 

» 

"  Of  many  delightful  memories  of  Governor  Briggs,  there  are 
none  that  affect  me  more  powerfully  than  his  unwearied  minis- 
trations to  the  poor, — ministrations  that  were  continued  with 
increasing  devotion,  through  all  the  long  course  of  years  wherever 


334  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

it  was  my  privilege  to  know  his  bright  example,  and  to  feel  its 
holy  influence.  He  never  pleaded  the  cares  of  the  State,  the 
claims  of  society,  or  the  endearments  of  a  pleasant  home,  as  an 
excuse  for  omitting  the  frequent  personal  visits  which  are  so  grateful 
to  the  poor.  They  are  thankful  for  '  alms,'  —  but  these,  they  know, 
may  be  given  to  appease  an  uneasy  conscience,  or  from  a  desire  to 
be  popular,  or  even  to  avoid  the  stigma  of  meanness ;  while  they 
look  upon  a  visit  to  their  dwelling  as  a  recognition  of  brotherhood, 
and  a  proof  of  that  cordial  sympathy,  without  which,  even  the  rich- 
est gifts  have  no  fragrance.  Governor  Briggs  was  never  satisfied 
with  the  mere  giving  of  money  and  supplies,  —  although  he  was  as 
generous  as  he  was  discriminating  in  these ;  — but  when  about  to 
leave  Boston  for  a  brief  visit  at  home,  he  would  take  time  to  buy 
the  medicine  needed  by  a  poor  sick  girl  in  the  town  where  he 
lived,  and  would  seize  the  first  leisure  moment,  after  his  arrival 
there,  to  carry  it,  himself,  to  her  sick-room,  entering  her  presence 
with  as  much  deference  and  dignity  as  if  she  had  been  the  proudest 
lady  in  the  land;  inquiring  into  her  wants,  and  listening  with  a 
fatherly  sj'mpathy  to  her  account  of  her  own  condition  and  that 
of  her  family.  I  went  to  see  her  one  Sabbath  morning,  and  her 
smile,  always  bright,  was  unusually  glad,  as  she  said,  — 

"  '  The  Governor  came  to  see  us  last  night.  He  is  to  be  at  home 
a  few  days ;  and  he  told  me  he  would  come  and  take  me  to  ride 
this  morning,  if  it  should  be  fine.' 
"  '  Well,'  said  I,  'you  will  go,  for  it  is  very  fine  weather.' 
"  'Yes,'  said  Jane.  ' it  is  three  months  since  I  have  been  out  of 
this  room ;  the  last  time  I  went,  he  took  me ;  and  you  don't  know 
how  good  it  will  seem  to  breathe  the  cool,  pure  air  once  more.' 

"  Soon  we  heard  steps  upon  the  stairs;  and  the  Governor  en- 
tered, bearing  on  his  arm  a  basket,  filled  with  tea,  sugar,  and  other 
little  luxuries  for  Jane,  which  he  placed  upon  the  table,  saying,  — 
"  '  Are  you  sure  you  are  strong  enough  to  bear  the  ride  ? ' 
"  '  Oh,  yes,'  said  Jane ;  '  it  will  do  me  good,  ;-I  know  it  will.' 
"The  Governor  bade  us  wrap  her  warmly,  and  assisted  in  prepar- 
ing her  for  the  ride ;  then,  standing  at  the  head  of  the  steep  stairs, 
he  lifted  her  poor,  wasted  body,  and  carrying  her  gently  down  in 
his  arms,  placed  her  in  the  sleigh,  tucking  the  robes  around  her 


JAXE  HARRISONS  STORY.  335 


carefully,  so  that  no  cold  winds  should  creep  in  to  chill  her.  He 
drove  as  long  as  she  could  bear  it,  then  lifted  her  from  the  sleigh, 
carried  her  up  the  stairs,  and  placed  her  in  her  chair.  After  this, 
he  went  to  church,  leaving  Jane  with  the  sweet  recollection  of  his 
kindness  and  sympathy  to  cheer  her  until  he  should  come  home 
again.  A  distressing  cough,  and  the  frequent  raising  of  blood, 
kept  her  ill  many  years.  She  worked  in  a  cotton  factory  long  after 
her  path  to  and  from  the  mill  could  be  traced  on  the  snow  by  the 
blood  that  she  raised  as  she  went,  never  telling  of  it  as  long  as 
she  had  strength  to  walk,  because  she  thought  it  her  duty  to  sup- 
port herself  and  her  mother  and  sister  just  as  long  as  she  could. 
She  never  was  confined  to  her  bed  very  long  at  one  time ;  but  she 
was  obliged  to  keep  her  room  for  three  years,  with  the  exception 
of  one  short  visit  to  some  relatives,  and  an  occasional  drive,  when 
some  friend  took  her  out. 

"  McMunn's  elixir  of  opium  was  the  only  thing  that  relieved  her 
from  excessive  coughing,  and  enabled  her  to  sleep.  Of  course  she 
was  obliged  constantly  to  increase  the  dose ;  and  for  a  few  months 
before  her  death  she  used  a  vial-full  a  week.  In  all  these  three 
years,  I  do  not  think  Governor  Briggs  once  failed  to  renew  her 
supply  of  elixir  when  he  thought  it  must  be  expended ;  and  he  was 
in  the  habit  of  buying  it  for  her  in  Boston,  a  dozen  bottles  at  a  time. 
He  was  seldom  at  home  for  more  than  one  night  without  going  to 
see  her,  and  carrying  her  such  articles  of  food  as  her  delicate  appe- 
tite required,  and  which  her  inability  to  work  made  her  unable  to 
buy.  When  one  remembers  that  he  was  all  this  time  oppressed 
with  the  cares  of  the  State ;  that  he  had  numerous  relatives  and 
friends  whose  hospitalities  were  constantly  urged  upon  him ;  that 
his  fortune  was  never  large,  and  Jane  was  only  one  of  the  many 
recipients  of  his  bounty,  —  one  cannot  but  revere  the  Christ-like 
heart  of  love  that  thus  followed  the  Master,  remembering  His 
words,  '  He  that  would  be  great  among  you  shall  be  your  minister, 
and  whosoever  will  be  the  chiefest  shall  be  servant  of  all,'  for  even 
the  Son  of  Man  came  not  to  be  ministered  unto  but  to  minister.' 
This  path  to  greatness  is  so  purely  the  Christian  path,  and  is  so 
little  trodden  by  those  whose  names  are  honored  by  this  world, 
that  we  welcome  every  noble  name  like  that  of  Governor  Briggs, 


336  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

who  shines  with  equal  lustre  as  the  faithful  servant  of  his  country 
and  the  faithful  follower  of  his  Lord. 

"At  last  Jane  died,  worn  out  with  the  long  disease,  so  patiently 
and  sweetly  borne  as  to  make  her  sick-room  seem  like  '  the  gate  of 
heaven.'  Governor  Briggs  left  her,  late  at  night,  thinking  that  she 
was  '  almost  home.'  In  the  morning  he  went  again,  '  but  she  was 
not,  for  God  had  taken  her.'  He  looked  upon  her  placid  face,  and 
tenderly  folded  her  thin  hands  upon  her  breast,  as  he  said  to  me, 
with  husky  voice,  and  eyes  filled  with  tears,  '  I  loved  Jane ;  a  more 
Christ-like  spirit  I  never  knew.' 

"Others  may  tell  of  his  wisdom  as  a  ruler  and  a  statesman; 
others  may  speak  of  his  worldly  honors  and  rewards,  —  but  I 
cherish  the  memory  of  his  constant  ministrations  to  the  poor,  and 
his  tender  devotion  to  that  feeble,  dying  girl,  as  the  proof  of  a 
heart  '  unspotted  by  the  world,  that  visited  the  fatherless  and  the 
widow  in  their  affliction ;  that  did  justice,  loved  mercy,  and  walked 
humbly  before  God.'  " 

This  touching  narrative  —  as  pure  a  gem  of  story  as  any 
in  "  The  Short  and  Simple  Annals  of  the  Poor"  —  is  con- 
tinued in  the  following  beautiful  letter  from  the  Governor 
to  Ms  daughter,  whose  interest  in  poor  Jane  was  scarcely 
less  tender  than  that  of  her  noble  father  :  — 

Pittsfield,  7th  Nov.,  1848. 
My  dear  Daughter  : 

Just  before  eleven  o'clock  on  Saturday  night,  Jane  fell  asleep, 
and  her  quiet  spirit  took  its  departure.  I  saw  her  after  dark,  and 
left  H.  B.  there.  She  remained  until  about  half  an  hour  before 
Jane  died.  The  last  thing  she  said,  except  to  say  that  she  was  in 
great  pain  for  a  moment,  she  said  to  H.  In  a  whisper,  she  began 
to  repeat,  "  Though  I  walk  through  the  valley  and  the  shadow  of 
death,  I  will  fear  no  evil ;  thy  rod  and  thy  staff,  they  comfort  me," 
but  was  unable  to  go  through  with  it.     Helen  finished  repeating  it. 

She  sent  for  me  just  at  dusk.  I  went  down,  —  she  was  dying. 
In  a  whisper,  which  had  the  same  sweet  and  beautiful  accent  as 
her  voice,  sdie  said,  "  Mr.  Briggs,  I  want  to  ask  you  to  be  as  good 


HIS  DAUGHTER'S  POSTSCRIPT.  337 

to  N.  and  mother,  when  I  am  gone,  as  you  have  been  to  me.  N., 
poor  giri,  is  feeble ;  nobody  knows  her ;  and  I  fear  when  I  am  gone 
no  one  will  have  sympathy  for  her;  and.  Mr.  Briggs,  I  want  to 
thank  you  and  your  family  for  your  goodness  to  me.  But,"  said  she, 
"  I  can't  talk  much."  I  told  her  not  to  try.  I  asked  if  she  felt  that 
she  was  on  "thfi  rock."  She  said,  "Yes,  I  do."  She  died  without 
a  struggle  or  a  groan.  She  said,  when  she  remembered  how  kind 
people  had  been,  how  well  she  had  been  provided  for,  she  some- 
times feared  she  had  had  her  good  things  in  this  life,  and  should 
fail  of  happiness  in  the  next  world.  Oh,  what  a  beautiful  spirit 
was  that,  and  what  a  rebuke  for  the  ingratitude  of  those  of  us  who 
have  an  abundance  of  the  things  of  this  life.  A  respectable  num- 
ber of  people  attended  her  funeral.  Dr.  Todd  made  some  appro- 
priate remarks,  and  gave  Jane  a  true  and  beautiful  character. 

Lovely  girl !  she  is  now  clothed  in  celestial  robes,  and  basks  in 
the  smile  of  that  Saviour  whcse  beauties  she  so  strikingly  reflected 
in  her  meek  and  quiet  life.  In  the  last  year  of  her  life,  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  say  which  most  honored  the  Saviour  and  his  religion, —  Jane, 
with  her  angelic  spirit  in  the  midst  of  poverty  and  sickness,  or  H., 
in  health,  by  her  deeds  of  charity  and  love  towards  her. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  daughter  adds,  to  her  transcript  of  this  letter,  uiese 
fitly  concluding  lines  :  — 

"  His  ministry  to  Jane  is  ended  here ;  but  to  the  close  of  his  life 
the  mother  and  sister  committed  to  his  care  by  the  dying  girl  were 
never  neglected  or  forgotten.  Mrs.  H.  and  X.  are  both  living,  — 
the  mother  many  years  in  her  bed,  ill  of  the  same  disease  that 
blighted  Jane  in  her  youth.  Often,  as  I  enter  the  room,  the  wrin- 
kled, wasted  image  of  the  aged  woman  is  transfigured  by  the  an- 
gelic vision  of  her  daughter's  face,  which  my  soul  sees  shiuing 
through  the  mother's ;  and  nowhere,  as  '  seeing  Him  who  is  invis- 
ible,' do  I  more  truly  feel  the  presence  of  those  ministers  of  His 
who  do  His  pleasure,  than  when  sitting  beside  the  bed-side  of 

Jane's  mother." 

29 


338  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

His  kindliness  of  feeling  was  as  perpetual  as  his  unos- 
tentatiousness  of  manner ;  and  they  were  sometimes  dis- 
played together  in  beautiful  harmony.  Here  is  an  example, 
furnished  by  one  who  witnessed  the  incident :  — 

"  During  one  of  those  delightful  weeks  last  September,  a  gentle- 
man and  lady  from  Berkshire  County  were  riding  through  a  retired 
village  in  Connecticut.  As  they  passed  a  certain  farm-house,  the 
gentleman  inquired  for  one  widow  Johnson,  and  was  directed  to 
her  place,  some  two  miles  distant.  As  he  approached  the  cottage 
of  the  widow,  he  saw  her  walking  in  the  garden.  Jumping  from 
his  carriage,  he  immediately  accosted  her  with  the  appellation  of 
'  Mother  Johnson ! '  The  old  lady's  eyes  being  somewhat  dim  with 
age,  she  did  not  at  first  recognize  the  stranger. 

"  '  What ! '  inquired  the  gentleman ;  '  do  you  not  know  me,  whom 
you  named  when  a  baby,  and  to  whom  you  gave  two  silver  dol- 
lars ? ' 

"  '  Ah ! '  said  the  lady,  '  are  you  the  one  I  called  George  Nixon 
Briggs  when  a  babe  ? ' 

"  '  Yes,'  was  the  reply;  < I  have  come  sixty  miles  to  see  you.' 

"  I  need  not  describe  the  welcome  which  the  old  lady  gave  to 
one  who,  amid  the  honors  and  responsibility  of  public  life,  still 
recollected  a  poor  widow,  and  obeyed  the  precept  of  pure  religion." 

A  little  incident,  further  illustrating  this  aspect  of  his 
character,  occurred  while  he  was  Governor  of  Massachu- 
setts :  — 

"  Several  Christian  people  were  waiting  at  the  depot  for  the  cars 
to  take  them  to  a  public  meeting.  Among  this  number  were  Gov- 
ernor Briggs,  and  other  persons  of  prominence.  There  was  also 
there  a  pastor  of  a  small  country  church,  uneducated,  and  una- 
dorned with  eloquence  of  speech,  '  or  even  with  a  gold  ring,  or 
rich  apparel,'  —  whose  diffidence  led  him  to  stand  apart  from  the 
more  elevated  and  accomplished.  Governor  Briggs  observed  his 
embarrassment ;  and  immediately  whispered  to  one  of  the  group, 


KEMIXISCEXCES  BY  "GODFREY  GHEYLOCK."  339 

4  If  you  know  that  man,  please  introduce  me  to  him.'  The  intro- 
duction immediately  took  place,  to  the  gratification  of  the  com- 
pany ;  the  embarrassment  was  removed,  and  all  felt  that  they  were 
brethren." 

* 

The  letter  which  follows  is  from  a  friend,  well  known 
under  the  nom  de  plume  of  "  Godfrey  Grey  lock,"  addressed 
to  the  eldest  son  of  Governor  Briggs  :  — 

"  I  do  not  know  but  the  following  reminiscences  of  a  trip  to 
Boston,  when  your  father  was  on  board  the  cars,  may  seem  to  you 
of  too  trivial  a  nature  to  be  recalled.  I  know  that  the  incidents 
mentioned  are  such  as  occurred  daily  with  him,  and  that  the  part 
which  he  took  in  them  was  the  same  as  in  thousands  of  instances 
had  given  pleasure  to  those  who  remembered  them,  long  after 
they  had  probably  passed  from  his  mind.  It  may  be  well,  how- 
ever, to  preserve,  for  that  very  reason,  a  few  individual  instances 
of  those  minor  acts  of  kindness,  which  in  the  mass  gave  so  strong 
a  color  to  his  character,  and,  by  the  love  which  they  gained  for  him 
from  all  classes,  enabled  him  to  accomplish  so  much  good.  In  the 
spring  of  1851  I  chanced  to  occupy,  one  day,  the  same  seat  with 
your  father,  in  the  cars  of  the  Western  Eailroad.  The  cars  were 
excessively  crowded,  many  being  compelled  to  stand ;  and  when 
we  reached  "Westfield  there  entered  at  the  end  opposite  to  us,  two 
women,  evidently  much  wearied,  and  one  carrying  a  child.  None 
of  the  gentlemen  in  that  vicinity  seemed  to  notice  their  condition ; 
possibly  the  standing  crowd  concealed  them  from  many.  But 
Governor  Briggs,  as  the  cars  moved  off,  went  forward,  and  invited 
them  to  our  seat,  and  assisted  the  one  with  the  child  to  reach  it. 
At  once  many  seats,  which  had  not  been  offered  to  the  wearied 
women,  were  offered  to  the  Governor  of  Massachusetts ;  but  he 
continued  standing,  talking  kindly  to  the  women,  and,  at  times, 
soothing  the  child,  which  had  been  made  restless  by  its  unaccus- 
tomed position.  There  was  nothing  in  this,  you  may  say,  more 
than  any  true-hearted  gentlemen  ought  to  have  done.  True ;  but 
in  a  whole  car-full,  Governor  Briggs  was  the  only  one  to  think  of 


340  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

and  do  it.  Possibly  he  was  the  only  one  who  could  have  gracefully 
done  it. 

"  We  passed  on,  and  as  we  approached  the  Brookline  bridge,  near 
Boston,  found  that  a  collision  had  taken  place  upon  it,  completely 
blocking  the  passage  with  the  wreck  of  two  trains,  which  hung  by 
a  fearfully-precarious  hold  over  the  water.  It  was  necessary  for 
the  passengers  to  clamber  over  the  wreck  and  through  it,  to  reach 
the  relief  train,  while  their  baggage  was  sent  to  the  city  by  the 
highway.  But  among  the  passengers  was  an  old  Irish  woman, 
one  of  those  wrong-headed  and  ignorant  people  who  never  can  be 
made  to  see  the  necessity  of  anything  out  of  their  ordinary  course. 
She  would  not  and  could  not  be  separated  from  her  trunk —  a  rude, 
hair-covered  chest.  Most  men  would  have  been  merely  amused  — 
at  least,  indifferent  to  her  troubles ;  but  ludicrous  as  was  her  grief, 
it  was  piteous  and  real ;  and  such,  however  uncouth  and  ground- 
less, never  failed  to .  touch  the  heart  of  the  Governor.  So,  when, 
having  passed  from  one  to  another,  imploring  aid,  she  came  to 
him,  perceiving  at  once  the  uselessness  of  explaining  matters  to 
her,  he  quietly  took  hold  of  one  end  of  the  trunk,  and  helped  her 
carry  it  over  the  tottering  wreck.  The  profuse  and  quaintly- 
expressed  thanks  of  the  woman,  and  her  still  more  profuse  and 
quaint  apologies,  when  she  found  who  had  played  the  porter  for 
her,  were  extremely  amusing ;  but  I  will  venture  to  say  that  there 
were  few  present  who  did  not  envy  your  father  his  promptness  and 
willingness  to  confer  happiness,  by  so  simple  an  act,  even  upon  so 
rude  a  creature  as  this,  and  that  while  detracting  nothing  from  the 
dignity  of  his  position. 

"  Continuing  my  trip  from  Boston,  where  your  father  stopped, 
to  Martha's  Vineyard,  I  employed  a  man  to  carry  me  from  point  to 
point  on  that  island,  —  a  plain  but  intelligent  and  quick-witted  per- 
son, of  much  shrewdness  and  criticism,  which  he  applied  freely  to 
public  men  as  we  rode  along.  But  happening  to  learn,  accident- 
ally, that  I  was  from  Pittsfleld,  he  checked  his  horses  suddenly, 
and  exclaimed :  '  Governor  Briggs  lives  there  ! '  Somewhat  sur- 
prised at  his  apparent  emotion,  I  replied  in  the  affirmative,  and  he 
continued,  'I  love  that  man;  I  always  shall.  You  know  I'm  a 
Democrat;  but  I  always  vote  for  George  N.  Briggs.     He's  got  a 


VISITS  TO  A   BLIND  BROTHER.  341 

heart,  —  he  has ! '  I  asked  him  how  he  had  found  that  out ;  and  he 
said  that  once,  when  the  Governor  was  reviewing  the  militia  at 
New  Bedford,  I  think,  he  was  standing  directly  behind  him,  with 
his  little  daughter  in  his  arms.  The  child  begged  to  see  the 
Governor  and  the  troops,  and  the  crowd  and  his  position  made 
it  hard  to  show  her  either ;  but  the  Governor,  happening  to  hear 
her  entreaties,  turned  round,  took  her  in  his  arms,  and  placing  her 
on  his  horse  in  front  of  him,  showed  her  the  soldiers,  and  then, 
with  a  kiss,  returned  her  to  her  father,  —  a  pleased  child  and  a 
grateful  father,  as  you  may  well  believe.  '  I  have  loved  him  for 
that,'  said  he  to  me,  •  and  I  always  shall.' 

"  Slight  and  common  as  these  incidents  are,  it  may  not  be  un- 
pleasant to  have  them  remembered,  as  occurring  in  two  consec- 
utive days ;  and  one  other,  which  happened  since,  may  be  worth 
recalling. 

"  Arriving  at  Pittsfield  in  the  cars  with  a  travelling  acquaintance 
from  the  West,  we  found  that  the  train  would  be  delayed  a  few 
minutes,  and  he  asked  me  to  show  him  the  residence  of  Governor 
Briggs,  who  then,  alas !  had  passed  away.  I  took  him  to  a  point 
from  which  he  obtained  a  distant  view,  and  as  he  seemed  deeply 
interested  in  it,  I  remarked,  carelessly,  '  So  you  are  a  hero  wor- 
shipper.' 'No,'  he  replied,  with  feeling;  'I  loved  the  man;'  I 
had  reason  to.'  I  had  no  time  to  learn  the  reason  of  this  feeling, 
whether  it  arose  from  some  of  the  minor  acts  of  kindness,  such 
as  those  which  I  have  related,  or  from  some  other  greater  benefits, 
for  which  occasion  more  rarely  presents  itself;  but  the  tone  and 
manner  of  the  speaker  seemed  to  me  more  earnest  than  would 
have  been  likely  to  have  been  caused  by  the  former.  Hoping  that 
what  I  have  written  may  prove  a  pleasant  addition  to  your  treasury 
of  pleasant  incidents,  connected  with  the  life  of  your  father, 

"  I  am,  as  ever,  faithfully  your  friend, 

"G.  G." 

"  Governor  Briggs,"  says  another  witness,  "  was  a  real  friend  to 
the  poor,  and  to  those  especially  who  were  crushed  by  sickness 
and  misfortune ;  and  he  felt  that  among  these  he  had  received  the 
most  profitable  lessons  and  witnessed  the  most  powerful  displays 
of  Divine  grace.     A  member  of  the  church  who  had  attained  a 

29* 


3-42  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

great  age.  and  who  lived  some  miles  from  the  village,  had  been  de- 
prived of  sight  for  forty  years ;  but  God  seemed  to  have  shut  out  the 
outer  light  that  the  inner  light,  the  light  of  the  soul,  might  shine 
with  celestial  brightness.  This  was  one  of  his  favorite  visiting 
places.  He  loved  to  sit  at  his  feet  and  listen  to  the  recital  of  God's 
dealings  with  him.  He  witnessed  his  cheerfulness  and  submission, 
his  overflowing  gratitude  and  love ;  and  felt  that  this  was  one  of 
the  rarest  instances  of  the  power  of  Christianity  to  remove  all 
obstacles  to  happiness,  and,  literally,  to  change  darkness  to  light. 
"By  a  previous  arrangement,  we  were  to  have  visited  this  patri- 
arch in  Israel  together  the  day  following  the  accident  which 
resulted  in  his  death.  This  aged  friend  soon  followed  him ;  and 
they  have  met,  ere  this,  in  that  bright  world  where  there  are  no 
accidents ;  •  where  no  one  shall  say,  I  am  sick ; '  no  blindness 
there ;  no  darkness  at  all." 


CHAPTER    XXVIII. 

HIS  RELIGIOUS  LIFE  — A  CHRISTIAN  ENTIRELY  —  HARMONY  OF  HIS  FAITH 
AND  WORKS  — HIS  CATHOLIC  SPIRIT  — RELIGIOUS  HABITS— HIS  ESTIMA- 
TION OF  HIS  PASTORS  —  THEIR  ESTIMATION  OF  HIM  —  TRIBUTE  FROM  REV. 
J.  V.  AMBLER  —  TRIBUTE  FROM  REV.  L.  PORTER,  D.  D. —  ANECDOTE  OF  HIS 
CHRISTIAN  SYMPATHY. 

2nIE  religious  life  of  Governor  Briggs  was  so  inter- 
woven with  every  other  aspect  of  his  life,  that  it 
can  no  more  be  considered  apart  from  them,  than 
could  they  be  isolated  from  his  Christian  experi- 
ence and  practice.  They  all  grew  together,  —  the 
natural  and  the  spiritual,  the  human  and  the  divine,  the 
secular  and  the  sacred,  —  and  in  all  these  phases  the  heaven- 
ward still  controlling  the  earthward,  while  the  latter  afforded 
ample  scope  for  the  exercise  and  rich  development  of  the 
former. 

He  was  peculiarly  a  religious  man,  and  his  piety  was 
eminently  practical.  Its  subjective  character  was  pro- 
found and  thorough.  It  subjugated,  not  indeed,  by  an  un- 
welcome constraint,  but  rather  by  a  most  grateful  force, 
all  the  powers  of  his  being  taking  possession  of  all,  and 
transforming  them  into  its  own  type  and  image.  He  was 
most  consciously  not  his  own,  and  the  recognition  in  his 
soul  of  his  obligations  to  his  Redeemer  and  Saviour  was 
unqualified  and  unintermitted.  The  entireness  of  his  sub- 
jection to  the  law  and  spirit  of  Christianity  knew  no  quali- 
fication from  his  own  reason  or  judgment — and  yielded  to 
none  except  that  which  his  sinful  nature  imposed  upon  it. 

343 


o44  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

He  loved  the  cause  and  the  cross  of  his  Divine  Master,  and 
if  at  times  he  was  drifted  by  the  tide  of  temptation  into 
doubts  of  his  personal  acceptance  with  God,  he  was  never 
carried  into  the  fogs  of  impersonal  skepticism.  His  faith 
in  the  fundamental  doctrines  of  evangelical  religion,  of 
which  the  vicarious  sacrifice  of  Christ  is  the  centre  and 
soul,  was  ingenuous  and  tender.  The  story  of  the  cross 
alwa3*s  stirred  him  to  the  deepest  emotion,  and  his  own 
loving  interest  in  it  made  his  exhibition  of  it  to  others  so 
effective. 

His  objective  piety  was  consistent  with  this  inner  faith. 
In  this  respect  he  was  unlike  some  Christians  in  whom  the 
two  forces  of  spiritual  life  are  of  greatly  unequal  develop- 
ment. It  is  this  truth  that  makes  it  impossible  to  separate 
his  profession  from  his  practice,  his  faith  from  his  life.  He 
was  everywhere  and  at  all  times  a  Christian,  unobtrusive, 
yet  always  felt.  It  was  impossible,  perhaps,  for  any  one 
to  be  long  in  his  society  without  discovering  this  inner  life 
from  the  outer  manifestations  of  it. 

The  nice  balance  in  his  character  of  the  two  influences 
of  Christian  faith,  the  interior  and  the  exterior,  made  him, 
for  the  most  part,  a  confident  and  peaceful«believer.  Had 
he  been  deficient  in  objective  piety  or  practical  religion, 
his  soul  would  have  often  sunk  into  glooms  and  deep 
disquietudes  —  of  which  he  sometimes,  even  as  it  was,  ap- 
proached the  borders,  and  trembled  in  their  dim  twilight. 
Generally  his  active  piety,  his  earnest  solicitudes  for  others, 
his  endeavors  to  win  souls  to  Christ,  his  ministrations  to 
his  Master's  disciples, — especially  to  the  least  of  them,  — 
left  him  little  leisure,  and  less  inclination,  perhaps,  for 
those  morbid  introspections  and  apprehensions  which  would 
have  availed  to  dim  the  brightness  of  his  view  of  Christ. 


HIS   CATHOLIC   SPIRIT.  $45 

He  was  never  so  happy  as  when  his  heart  and  hand  were 
working  in  sweet  unison  for  the  advancement  of  his  Re- 
deemer's cause.  His  church  was  dear  to  him,  less  for 
its  peculiarities  of  creed  and  practice — which,  neverthe- 
less, he  conscientiously  maintained — than  for  its  love  to 
Christ,  which  binds  it  to  all  the  redeemed  by  his  blood  for- 
ever. 

Especially  was  he  no  bigot.  To  hold  with  unwavering 
firmness  peculiar  and  apparently  exclusive  and  excluding 
tenets,  and  yet  to  have  a  Christ-like  charity,  comprehensive 
and  consistent,  for  all  Christians,  is  the  difficult  problem 
which  he  solved,  if  not  in  his  speech  yet  in  his  deeds,  as 
all  who  know  him  well  will  ungrudgingly  concede.  His 
attachment  to  his  own  church  was  exemplary,  and  his  influ- 
ence in  it  almost  unbounded,  as  the  happy  result  of  his 
unqualified  devotion  to  all  its  interests.  His  presence,  his 
spirit,  his  council,  were  each  and  all  productive  of  harmony 
and  zeal  among  his  brethren. 

Nor  was  he  less  esteemed  among  other  denominations  as 
a  noble  and  wise  and  beneficent  exemplar  of  Christianity. 
Many  who  had  not  reached  his  ecclesiastical  stand-point 
were  yet  drawi  to  him,  in  abiding  affection  by  his  great 
catholic  spirit. 

Of  his  religious  habits,  little  need  be  said  beyond  the 
intimations  which  these  memorials  everywhere  convey  of 
his  devotional  nature  and  practice. 

At  home  and  abroad  he  lived  in  the  atmosphere  of  prayer 
and  praise.  He  was  as  fervent  in  supplication  at  the  par- 
lor worship  of  the  Marlboro'  Hotel  in  Boston,  as  he  was  in 
the  conference  meeting  in  Pittsfield,  or  in  his  own  family 
circle.  Everywhere  he  breathed  the  spirit  of  pure  and 
undefiled  religion. 


34 G  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

It  is  both  proper  and  pleasing  for  the  pen  of  the  biog- 
rapher to  give  place  here  to  memorials  chiefly  relating  to 
the  Christian  character  of  Governor  Briggs,  from  those 
-who  had,  outside  of  his  own  home,  the  best  opportunity 
and  the  best  right  no  less,  to  know  him  thoroughly — his 
pastors  in  Lanesboro'  and  Pittsfield. 

He  understood,  better  than  most  Christian  men,  what  is 
due  to  the  pastor  of  a  church  from  his  people.  He  esteemed 
those  who  were  "  over  him  in  the  Lord  very  highly  in 
love,  for  their  works'  sake."  He  was  his  pastor's  faithful 
friend,  and  held  it  to  be  spiritual  treason  to  have  two  sorts 
of  manners  for  him,  —  one  before  his  face  and  the  other  be- 
hind his  back.  Hence  his  pastor  was  near  enough  to  his 
person  and  his  heart  to  understand  him,  and  it  is  not 
strange  that  any  one  honored  enough  in  God's  good  Provi- 
dence to  be  the  pastor  of  such  a  man,  should  have  loving 
testimony  to  bear  for  his  memorial. 

His  pastor  in  Lanesboro',  the  Rev.  J.  V.  Ambler,  contrib- 
utes the  following  grateful  reminiscences  :  — 

"In  the  spring  of  1837,  young  and  with  little  experience,  I  com- 
menced my  public  ministry  in  Lanesboro'.  I  well  remember  with 
what  trepidation  I  contemplated  the  return  of  the  Sabbath  when  I 
must  preach  before  our  member  of  Congress.  But  his  appreci- 
ative manner,  and  kind  words  of  approval  and  suggestion,  soon  so 
won  my  confidence  and  love,  that  his  presence  was  desired  rather 
than  dreaded.  I  felt  that  when  he  was  present,  I  had  at  least  one 
hearer  interested  in  the  simple  story  of  the  man  of  Nazareth,  and 
who  was  in  sympathy  with  the  pulpit,  understood  its  difficulties, 
and  would  charitably  allow  for  its  failures. 

"  On  one  occasion,  after  his  return  from  a  protracted  session  of 
Congress,  he  remarked  to  a  friend,  '  It  seems  good  to  listen  again 
to  the  simple  preaching  of  the  Gospel ; '  and  added,  '  many  of 
those  who  preach  before  Congress  seem  to  forget  that  Congress- 


TRIBUTE  FROM  REV.  J.    V.  AMBLER.  347 

men,  like  other  men,  need  Christ.'  To  the  writer  he  frequently 
spoke  of  the  lamented  Cookman,1  as  a  marked  exception  to  this 
rule. 

"  His  views  of  religion  were  eminently  practical.  With  him 
religion  was  life,  as  well  as  faith  and  opinions.  He  believed  that 
a  pure  and  blameless  life  followed  as  the  effect  of  religion.  After 
listening  to  a  discourse  on  '  Common  Honesty,'  he  expressed  to  me 
his  surprise,  '  that  a  subject  of  so  much  importance  should  be  so 
rarely  the  theme  of  pulpit  discourse,'  and  said,  '  I  regard  a  religion 
as  worthless,  that  does  not  make  men  just  in  their  bargains.' 

"Asa  public  speaker,  his  earnest  manners  and  his  felicitous 
diction  gave  him,  in  a  remarkable  degree,  the  power  of  holding  the 
attention  of  an  audience.  I  shall  never  forget  how  on  a  Sabbath 
evening  he  thrilled  the  congregation.  It  was  a  time  of  more  than 
ordinary  religious  interest  in  town.  He  addressed  himself  to 
young  men,  and  spoke  of  the  young  man  in  the  Gospel  who  came 
as  an  inquirer  to  Jesus,  and  who,  upon  learning,  as  he  thought, 
the  hard  terms  of  salvation,  went  away  sorrowful,  and  after  a 
moment's  pause,  with  subdued  manner  and  voice,  he  said,  '  Young 
men,  unless  he  repented,  he  is  sorrowful  yet.' 

"Few  men  had  a  keener  relish  for  a  good  anecdote;  and  his 
stock  seemed  inexhaustible,  upon  which  he  had  the  happy  faculty 
of  drawing  at  the  right  time  and  to  the  right  degree,  to  illustrate 
and  enliven  his  thought  or  to  clinch  his  argument.  To  illustrate 
the  chaffering  gift  of  some  men,  he  was  wont,  with  much  good 
humor  and  zest,  to  speak  of  a  Quaker  friend  of  his,  who,  when 
told  that  the  potatoes  he  was  offering  for  sale  were  small,  replied, 
'Yea,  they  are  small,  but  they  are  plump ; '  and  when  told  that  his 
vinegar  was  deficient  in  strength,  responded,  '  Yea,  but  thee  never 
tasted  so  pleasant  a  sour.' 

"  His  burning  words  and  stirring  appeals  in  behalf  of  missions 
will  long  be  remembered  by  many.  But  I  recall  with  peculiar 
interest  his  first  contributions  to  that  cause ;  and,  when  the  idea 
of  missions  as  the  essential  element  of  aggressive   Christianity 

1  Chaplain  for  some  years  to  the  House  of  Representatives. 


348  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

began  to  take  possession  of  his  heart  and  mind,  to  remain  ever- 
more a  deep  conviction. 

*"  My  last  interview  with  him  was  but  a  few  days  previous  to  the 
accident  which  terminated  his  life.  At  times  he  seemed  much 
depressed,  The  woes  of  his  country  afflicted  him ;  and  the  shadow 
of  coming  events  had  fallen  upon  him.  He  remarked  that  he  had 
been  thinking  over  the  list  of  families  known  to  him,  where  the 
father  had  been  removed.  '  Soon,'  said  he,  c  all  things  moved  on  as 
if  they  had  never  been  there,  and,  often,  apparently  better  than  if 
they  had  remained.  These  things  impress  me  with  the  little  con- 
sequence of  a  man,  even  in  his  own  family,  where  he  will  be  the 
most  missed.  In  the  great  plan  of  God  Moses  died,  but  the  great 
work  did  not  stop.' 

"During  the  interview  I  alluded  to  his  pleasant  home.  'Yes,' 
he  said,  '  it  is  better  than  I  ever  expected  to  have,  and  much  better 
than  I  deserve.'  He  then  alluded  to  the  humble  abode  and  the 
slender  means  of  the  first  years  of  his  professional  life,  and  stated 
that  often,  when  professional  duties  called  him  abroad,  he  saw 
many  things  which  he  desired  very  much  to  purchase  for  the  little 
ones  at  home  and  their  mother,  and  that,  although  his  circum- 
stances were  now  so  changed  as  to  enable  him  to  gratify  all  reason- 
able desires  in  that  direction,  yet  those  were  the  happiest  days  of 
his  life.  He  stated,  also,  that  during  those  early  years  of  struggle 
several  members  of  the  Berkshire  bar  and  himself  were  conversing 
on  the  subject  of  income  and  accumulation.  '  We  unanimously 
agreed,'  said  he,  '  that  ten  thousand  dollars  would  be  all  we  should 
desire.'  Then,  with  a  smile  and  compressed  lip,  and  a  motion  of 
the  hand  peculiar  to  himself,  he  seemed  to  say,  '  How  little  one 
knows  what  is  in  his   heart  till  it  is  developed  by  circumstances.' 

"As  I  was  about  to  depart  Mrs.  Briggs  said,  'You  will  call 
again  soon ;  remember  that  we  are  getting  to  be  old  folks.'  He 
quickly  interrupted  her,  and,  in  his  peculiarly  pleasant  way,  said, 
'  Speak  for  yourself,  if  you  please,  Harriet ;  Jam  not  getting  old.' 

"  The  superior  of  George  Nixon  Briggs.  taking  him  all  in  all,  is 
not  often  seen  in  this  world.  If  any  man  ever  did,  or  ever  could 
in  truth  say  of  him,  '  He  has  influenced  me  to  evil,'  or,  '  I  trusted 
him,  and  he  deceived  or  betrayed  me,'  I  have  yet  to  learn  the  fact. 


TRIBUTE  FROM  REV.    L.    PORTER,    D.  D.  349 

In  the  town  where  his  early  years  and  a  portion  of  those  of  his 
prime  were  spent,  his  memory  is  precious  as  a  true  man,  a  Chris- 
tian, a  peace-maker,  and  a  friend  to  all." 

Yet  another  pastoral  tribute  to  his  memory  is  that  fur- 
nished by  the  Rev.  Lemuel  Porter,  D.  D.,  not  very  long 
before  his  owe  summons  came  to  follow  his  friend  across 
the  narrow  sea.  Dr.  Porter  was  pastor  of  the  Baptist 
church  in  Pittsfield  for  twelve  years ;  and,  from  the 
time  Governor  Briggs  removed  thither  from  Lanesboro'  up 
to  his  last  hours,  he  ministered  to  him  in  spiritual  things, 
loved  him,  and  was  beloved  by  him.  The  memorial  he 
brinsrs  for  his  life-record  cannot,  therefore,  be  without  °;reat 
interest  for  the  reader.  It  is  to  us  a  triple  strain  of  sad- 
ness, reminding  us  of  the  death  of  his  friend,  of  that  of  his 
own  daughter,  and,  finally,  of  his  own  :  — 

"  Passing  a  few  days  in  Charlestown,  Mass.,  I  was  invited  to 
meet  Governor  Briggs,  at  the  house  of  one  of  his  Councillors.  It 
was  then  for  the  first  time  I  saw  his  noble  form,  his  benevolent 
face,  his  mild  blue  eye,  and  felt  the  influence  of  that  genial  spirit 
which  made  his  society  so  charming.  The  first  address  I  ever 
heard  him  make  was  in  Boston,  in  the  Bowdoin  Square  church,  at 
a  meeting  of  the  Missionary  Union.  He  was  then  Governor  in  the 
sixth  or  seventh  year  of  his  official  service.  His  remarks  were 
most  impressive  and  eloquent. 

"I  next  saw  him  in  his  own  beautiful  village  of  Pittsfield,  at  a 
meeting  of  the  Baptist  State  Convention,  and  well  remember  the 
most  touching  address  he  made  on  that  occasion.  The  last  time  I 
ever  saw  him  in  the  street  is  indelibly  impressed  on  my  memory. 
I  had  left  my  dear  daughter  Clara  in  my  carriage  while  I  went  into 
a  shop  on  West  Street.  When  I  came  out,  there  sat  the  noble 
man  on  horseback,  cheerfully  talking  with  Clara,  —  both  full  of 
life  and  spirit.  Could  I  then  have  imagined  that  within  three  or 
four  short  months  both  of  them  would  be  in  eternity !     In  a  few 

30 


350  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.    BR1GGS. 

weeks  he  had  gone  to  his  Saviour's  presence',  —  and  in  a  few  weeks 
more  she,  having  sung  her  requiem  over  his  cold  form,  joined  him 
in  the  songs  of  heaven,  '  where  there  is  no  more  death.' 

"  The  last  time  I  heard  him  address  his  Christian  friends  was  at 
the  covenant  meeting,  on  Saturday,  three  days  before  the   fatal 
event  which  took  him  from  us.     It  almost  seemed  as  if  he  had  a 
secret  consciousness  that  '  the  time  of  his  departure  was  at  hand.' 
Such  spiritual-mindedness,  such  tender,  solemn,  affectionate  ap- 
peals to  his  brethren  to  live  nigh  to  Christ,  I  never  heard  from  his 
lips.     If  he  had  really  known  that  he  was  speaking  to  us  from  the 
threshold  of  eternity,  he  could  not  have  been  more  tender  or  more 
earnest.     It  is  no  doubt  true,  that  he  possessed  by  nature  a  happy 
temperament,  but  it  should  be  remembered  that  at  the  early  age 
of  twelve  years  his  heart  was  regenerated  by  the  grace  of  God, 
and  that  religion  with  its  elevating,  purifying,  ennobling  power, 
became  with  him  a  pervading  and  controlling    influence.      He 
loved  the  Bible  from  his  youth.     His  whole  spirit,  and  even  his 
speech  was  stamped  with  the  impress  of  God's  word.     Underlying 
his  patriotism,  his  temperance  principles,  his  kindness  to  the  poor 
and  suffering,  was  the  Christian  disposition.   He  was  the  Christian 
patriot,  the  Christian  reformer,  the  Christian  benefactor.     In  re- 
ligious opinion  he  was  a  Calvinistic  Baptist,  made  so  by  the  study 
of  the  Scriptures.     His  views  of  gospel  doctrines  were  unusually 
clear,  yet  he  loved  religion  better  than  theology.     His  religion  was 
practical.     He  judged  the  tree  by  its  fruit.     '  Oh,  that  Christians,' 
he  often  said.  '  were  more  exemplary  in  their  lives.     They  ought 
so  to  live,   that  a   Christian   profession    shall  be  a  passport   to 
universal  confidence.'     He  had  his   personal  views   of  revealed 
truth,  and  held  them  with  all  the  firmness  of  strong  conviction, 
yet  he  respected  and  loved  every  one  in  whom  he  saw  the  image 
of  Christ.     He  often  said,  '  Grace  be  with  all  them  that  love  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  sincerity.'    He  gave,  what  he  claimed,  liberty 
of  conscience.     I  never  heard  him  utter  a  word  that  savored  of 
bigotry.     He  was  firm  as  a  rock  on  any  principle,  but  his  manners 
were  as  genial  as  the  aspect  of  summer  foliage  on  the  granite.  He 
used  to  engage  in  all  our  devotional  meetings,  especially  in  those 
preparatory  to  the  communion ;  yet  I  never  heard  him  pray  in  one 


TRIBUTE  FROM  REV..L.   PORTER,    D.    I).  351 


of  them.  I  used  to  be  surprised  at  this,  and  sometimes  spoke 
with  him  about  it.  '  I  have  no  gift  in  prayer,'  he  would  reply. 
Once,  however,  several  members  of  our  church  went  to  visit  our 
aged,  poor,  and  blind  brother  Lewis.  On  this  occasion,  when 
called  upon,  he  offered  prayer.  In  that  humble  home  of  the  poor, 
amidst  that  little  band  of  disciples,  he  poured  out  his  soul  in  sup- 
plication with  such  unction,  such  heavenfy-mindedness,  and  in 
such  appropriate  language,  as  made  me  wonder  at  his  saying  he 
had  '  no  gift  in  prayer.' 

"  There  was,  indeed,  something  most  unusual  and  impressive  and 
devotional  in  his  prayers.  The  tones  of  his  voice  —  full,  tender, 
subdued,  firm,  and  yet  almost  tremulous  —  inspired  in  others  the 
reverence  and  awe  which  filled  his  soul  when  he  approached  God 
with  words  of  prayer.  His  prayers  were  always  very  short,  but 
every  word  and  sentiment  was  prayer  and  worship,  flowing  in 
simple,  earnest  utterance.  I  well  remember  at  a  sunrise  prayer- 
meeting  many  years  ago,  on  New  Year's  morning,  in  the  old  meet- 
ing house  in  Pittsfleld,  Dr.  Todd  called  upon  him  to  pray.  I  see 
his  face  and  form  now,  as  on  that  morning,  and  remember  the 
pathos  of  his  tone,  the  solemn  fervor  and  humility  of  his  spirit, 
and  the  reverent  sweetness  of  his  language,  and  how  real  and  over- 
shadowing the  presence  of  God  seemed,  controlling  the  peculiar 
influences  of  this  morning  hour,  while  worshippers  entered  the 
New  Year, —  the  past  receding,  the  future  all  unknown. 

"He  seldom  spoke  with  assurance  of  his  interest  in  Christ,  but 
rather  of  his  unworthiness.  This  was,  I  think,  partly  from  con- 
stitutional peculiarities,  and  partly  from  his  high  conceptions  of 
Christian  character. 

"  Well  do  I  remember  him  in  the  church,  —  a  wise  counsellor,  a 
sure  guide,  an  unostentatious  Christian,  a  liberal  donor,  and  alwa}-s 
his  pastor's  friend. 

"  He  was  totally  unlike  Diotrephes,  who  'loved  to  have  pre-emi- 
nence.' He  was  more  like  John,  who  '  leaned  on  Jesus'  breast ; ' 
like  Mary,  who  sat  at  Jesus'  feet,  and  learned  of  Him.  He  had  a 
winning  way  in  leading  his  brethren  up  to  difficult  duties.  A  rich 
brother  once  seemed  disinclined  to  give  generously  in  an  impor- 
tant emergency.    The  Governor  said  to  him,  '  It  is  hard  giving  till 


352  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

you  get  used  to  it.  If  anybody  had  told  me  twenty-five  years  ago 
that  I  should  be  giving  five  hundred  dollars  at  a  time  to  the  church, 
I  should  not  have  believed  him.  But  I  have  been  educated  up  to 
it.  Giving  to  the  cause  of  Christ  now  comes  very  easy.  You 
must  be  educated.  The  way  is  to  keep  giving.  The  more  you 
do,  the  easier  it  will  be.'" 

An  incident  of  his  life  while  he  was  in  Washington,  will 
serve  here  to  illustrate  his  Christian  sympathy  and  humility, 
that  had  broader  exemplifications  perhaps,  but  hardly  a 
more  beautiful  one. 

He  had  been  apprized  that  a  colored  woman  was  to  be 
baptized  in  the  river  at  a  given  hour.  His  interest  in  that 
solemn  ordinance  led  him  to  be  &  witness  of  it.  As  he  re- 
paired thither,  he  met  a  fellow-member,  of  popular  habits, 
who  asked  him  whither  he  was  going.  On  being  told  with- 
out any  evasion,  he  sneered  and  said  contemptuous  things 
about  the  Baptists.  The  answer  he  received  is  worthy  of 
him  who  gave  it :  — 

"  My  friend,  the  Baptists  are  the  people  of  my  choice,  and  I 
shall  be  but  too  happy  to  encourage  and  assist,  if  need  be,  the  poor 
slave  woman  in  her  noble  act  of  obedience  to  her  Divine  Master." 


CHAPTER    XXIX. 

GOVERNOR  BRIGOS  AND  THE  MISSIONARY  "WORK  —  HIS  ENTIRE  SYMPATHY 
WITH  10 — THE  FIRST  LAY  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  A.  B.  M.  UNION  —  FITNESS 
FOR  THE  OFFICE  — TAKING  THE  CHAIR  IN  184S  — LETTER-  FROM  DR. 
WAYLAND  — THE  BUFFALO  ANNIVERSARY  IN  1S50  —  PRESIDENT'S  OPENING 
ADDRESS  — HIS  FAREWELL  CHARGE  TO  DEPARTING  MISSIONARIES —  A 
THRILLING  QUESTION  —  ANECDOTES  —  A  REMINISCENCE  BY  DR.  TODD  — 
HIS  FAITHFUL  SERVICES  —  THE  "UNION"  AT  BROOKLYN  IN  1S61  — EX- 
CITEMENT ON  NATIONAL  QUESTIONS  —  HIS  OPENING  SPEECH  — HIS  SPIRIT 
AND  ITS  EFFECT  — THE  NEXT  MEETING  AND  THE  VACANT  CHAIR  — 
TRIBUTES. 

HERE  is  one  phase  of  the  life  and  labors  of  the 
subject  of  this  Memoir,  of  which,  important  as  it 
was,  no  direct  view  has  been  taken.  It  is  his  mis- 
sionary work.  His  religion  was  of  quite  too  prac- 
tical and  objective  a  character  to  allow  him  to 
stand  aloof  from  the  great  movements  of  the  Christian 
world  for  the  conversion  of  the  heathen.  He  had,  rather, 
the  profoundest  sympathy  with  them,  and  in  every  possible 
way  helped  to  advance  the  cause  of  his  Divine  Master  in 
the  lands  that  sit  in  darkness  and  in  the  region  and  shadow 
of  death. 

It  was,  however,  in  his  own  quiet  and  unobtrusive  way 
that  he  served  the  cause  of  missions  during  the  first  portion 
of  his  public  life,  and  up  to  the  year  1847,  when  he  was 
brought  prominently  before  the  Christian  community  as  a 
leader  in  the  sublime  work.  This  was  effected  by  his  elec- 
tion, at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  American  Baptist  Mis- 
sionary Union,  in  Cincinnati,  President  of  that  great  body 
for  the  ensuing  year. 


30* 


353 


354  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

This  society  had  existed,  though  under  different  names, 
since  1814  ;  and  up  to  the  time  of  the  election  of  George 
N.  Briggs,  through  a  period  of  thirty-three  years,  its  pre- 
siding officers  had  been  all  clergymen,  live  having  been 
successively  elected.  He  was,  therefore,  the  first  layman 
called  to  that  responsible  position ;  and  this  change  of 
policy  in  the  choice  of  a  presiding  officer  was  the  »sult  of 
much  deliberation,  and  has  not  since  been  set  aside  by  tile 

body. 

The  choice  then  made  was  universally  approved,  the 
excellent  name  of  the  new  President  being  familiar  to  the 
denomination,  by  reason  of  his  public  distinctions  and  his 
connection  with  the  temperance  cause. 

It  was  no  inconsiderable  reason  for  his  selection  to  this 
important  office,  aside  from  his  eminent  Christian  fitness 
for  it,  that  he  had  a  high  reputation  as  a  presiding  officer. 
It  was  well  known  that  no  one  during  his  Congressional 
life  was  more  frequently  called  from  his  seat  to  the  Speak- 
er's chair,  for  brief  intervals,  than  he  was.  He  had  an 
exhaustive  knowledge  of  parliamentary  rules  and  points  of 
order  ;  and  his  dignity,  patience,  and  suavity  in  conducting 
business  and  maintaining  discipline,  were  so  well  appre- 
ciated on  the  floor  of  the  House,  that  he  at  one  time  nar- 
rowly escaped  the  honor  of  the  speakership  —  an  honor 
which  he  unquestionably  deserved. 

He  took  the  chair  of  this  distinguished  body  at  the  an- 
nual meeting  in  Troy,  held  in  1848,  and  was  then  seen,  for 
the  first  time,  by  a  great  majority,  perhaps,  of  the  delegates 
and  members  composing  it,  but  especially  of  those  from 
the  West  and  Southwest.  A  chronicler  of  the  occasion 
says,— 


PRESIDENT  OF  THE  A.   E.   M.    UNION.  355 

"  His  very  person  and  bearing  gave  him  favor;  and  as  he  stood 
up  and  began  to  speak  of  Jesus  and  his  salvation,  hearts  gathered 
spontaneously  to  him ;  and  before  he  was  half  done  descanting  on 
the  blessings  of  preaching  Christ  to  the  heathen,  the  whole  vast 
assembly  was  melted  into  tenderness.  It  was  oue  of  the  grandest 
triumphs  of  Christian  eloquence  we  have  ever  witnessed,  and  it 
will  never  die  out  from  the  minds  of  those  present.  That  hour 
was  settled  the  question  who  should  be  President  of  the  Mission- 
ary Union  for  many  years  to  come." 

His  opening  remarks  at  this  meeting  were  comparatively 
few,  and  as  yet  his  soul  was  not  stirred  within  him.  It 
was  in  his  closing  address  that  he  reached  and  swa}Ted  and 
subdued  the  hearts  of  all  present,  and  justified  the  remark 
of  some  correspondent  of  the  press,  that  "  he  kept  the  good 
wine  until  the  end  of  the  feast."  His  elevation  to  the 
high  post  was  now  felt  to  have  been  of  God.  Some  who 
doubted  the  wisdom  of  putting  a  layman  and  a  lawyer  into 
a  chair  eminently  sacred,  and  hitherto  occupied  by  those 
lights  of  the  Baptist  denomination,  Furman,  Semple,  Cone, 
Johnson,  and  Wayland,  acknowledged  their  mistake,  and 
joyfully  hailed  the  new  administration  as  the  beginning  of 
a  new  and  blessed  era  in  missionary  management  at  home, 
if  not  in  missionary  successes  abroad. 

The  immediate  predecessor  of  Governor  Briggs  in  the 
chair  of  the  Union  was  President  Wayland ;  and  the  fol- 
lowing letter  from  that  good  great  man  to  the  great  good 
man  who  succeeded  him  in  office,  and  who  has  since  been 
followed  by  him  into  his  rest,  will  be  most  appropriate  in 
this  sequence. 

Both  of  these  distinguished  servants  of  Christ  have  an 
illustrious  record  in  the  history  of  foreign  missions  ;  and 
the  labors  of  both  in  the   common  field  are  affectionately 


35G  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

and  gratefully  remembered  by  the  Baptist  denomination, 
and,  indeed,  by  the  whole  evangelical  church  :  — 

Providence,  June  10,  1818. 
My  dear  Sir: 

I  have  done  injustice  to  my  feelings  in  not  writing  to  you  before, 
to  express  the  pleasure  which  I,  and  every  member  of  the  Union, 
derived  from  your  presence  and  assistance  at  the  late  anniversary 
at  Troy.  I  do  not  here  refer  so  much  to  the  example  which  you 
gave  of  consecrating  your  civil  station,  in  some  measure,  to  the 
service  of  Christ,  or  to  your  peculiar  success  as  a  presiding  officer, 
as  to  the  delightful  spirit  of  interest  for  missions  which  you  dif- 
fused through  the  whole  assembly.  Those  of  us  who  have  been 
for  a  longer  period  publicly  engaged  in  the  work  were  delighted 
to  sit  at  your  feet  and  imbibe  a  portion  of  your  Christian  zeal.  I 
was  obliged  to  return  on  Friday  morning,  and  thus  lost  the  pleas- 
ure of  hearing  your  closing  address ;  but  the  impression  which  it 
left  on  the  assembly  was  expressed,  in  the  quotation  which  they 
made  in  speaking  of  it,  that  the  best  wine  had  been  reserved  to 
the  last. 

I  know  that  you  will  understand  the  motive  which  induces  me 
to  make  these  remarks.  You  have  not  happened  before  to  be 
among  us ;  and  the  situation  was  new  to  you.  It  must,  I  am  sure, 
be  gratifying  to  you  to  know  that  your  effort  to  aid  the  cause  of 
Christ  was  attended  by  a  blessing.  For  myself,  I  can  truly  say, 
that  I  could  have  wished  nothing  in  anywise  different.  I  had 
always  believed  that  the  cause  of  missions-  would  be  promoted  by 
placing,  in  promiueut  positions,  laymen  who  were  interested  in  its 
success.  EverjT  indication  of  Providence  seemed  to  point  to  you ; 
and  I  rejoice  that  we  all  read  these  indications  aright. 

Excuse  this  volunteer  commencement  of  correspondence.     Be 

assured  that  I  rejoice  in  every  instance  of  your  success  in  your 

benevolent  efforts,  and  that  I  remain 

Yours,  very  truly, 

F.  Wayland. 

His  Excellency  George  N.  Briggs. 

In  May,  1850,  the  American  Baptist  Missionary  Union 


PRESIDENT'S  OPENING  ADDRESS.  £57 

mot  on  its  thirty-sixth  anniversary,  in  the  city  of  Buffalo, 
where  its  President  made  by  his  addresses,  and  not  less  by 
his  whole  spirit  and  bearing,  a  deep  impression  upon  the 
great  convocation,  —  never  surpassed,  unless  at  the  anni- 
versary in  Brooklyn,  which  was  the  last  at  which  he 
presided. 

The  attendance  of  delegates  and  members  at  Buffalo  was 
unusually  large,  exceeding  eleven  hundred.  In  his  opening 
address  he  said,  — 

"  Men  and  brethren  of  the  American  Baptist  Missionary  Union,  — 
Under  the  smiles  of  Providence  we  are  assembled  to  hold  the  thirty- 
sixth  anniversary  of  this  institution  on  this  beautiful  May  morning. 
The  smiles  of  Heaven  have  attended  us  in  our  efforts  the  past  year. 
One  year  ago  we  met  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  — the  city  founded 
by  that  great  and  good  man,  William  Penn ;  the  city  where  that 
body  of  men  assembled  who  signed  the  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence, and  where  from  the  tower  of  Independence  Hall  went  forth 
the  peals  of  that  deep-toned  bell  that  proclaimed  us  to  be  an 
independent  people.  The  year  has  rolled  round,  the  blessing  of 
Heaven  has  crowned  our  labors,  and  prosperity  given  success  to 
our  churches.  And  now  we  are  this  morning  assembled  in  this 
young,  vigorous,  and  beautiful  city,  which  has  been  justly  denomi- 
nated the  Queen  City  of  the  Lakes,  sitting  upon  the  waters  pros- 
perous and  great.  A  few  years  since,  all  around  this  spot  where 
we  meet  was  an  unbroken  wilderness,  through  which  roamed  those 
who  knew  not  God.  But  now,  how  changed !  Everything  in  society 
bears  evidence  of  civilization  and  Christianity.  Here  we  are,  sur- 
rounded by  natural  scenery  which  is  unequalled;  inland  oceans 
are  spread  out  before  us,  and  we  are  within  the  sound  of  that 
cataract  which  4ias  proclaimed  the  mighty  power  of  God  ever  since 
its  creation. 

"Brethren  and  friends,  we  have  come  to  consult  together  in 
reference  to  the  interests  of  this  association.  I  said  last  year  that 
we  were  prosperous ;  we  are  still  prosperous.  I  have  been  told 
that  the  past  year  has  been  prosperous  beyond  any  in  our  history. 


358  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

God  has  honored  us,  as  humble  instruments,  in  promoting  the 
gospel  of  his  Son.  If  there  is  under  the  whole  heaven  a  work  free 
from  the  imputations  of  selfishness,  it  is  that  in  which  we  are 
engaged.  It  is  the  aim  of  this  Union  to  propagate  the  word  of 
God,  to  disseminate  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ.  And  why  should 
we  not  give  this  religion  to  all  men  ?  Why  should  not  the  religion 
of  that  Being,  whose  enemies,  even,  acknowledge  the  purity  of 
his  motives  and  his  life,  —  a  religion  whose  tendency  is  to  elevate 
human  character,  to  promote  its  honesty,  control  its  passions,  and 
nurture  whatever  is  lovely  and  pure,  be  propagated?  If  it  related 
only  to  this  life,  enforcing  all  that  is  just  and  true  in  human  broth- 
erhood, it  should  be  disseminated.  Buf  this  is  the  smallest  of  its 
blessings.  It  not  only  relates  to  our  interests  here,  but  it  reveals 
an  immortality,  and  shows  how  we  can  make  that  immortality 
happy.  And  it  is  the  only  religion  that  points  men  with  certainty 
to  eternal  happiness  beyond  the  grave.  Multitudes  are  shut  out 
from  the  blessiugs  of  this  religion,  and  why  should  they  not  have 
it?  It  is  our  imperative  duty  to  send  it  to  them.  And  this  is  the 
work  in  which  this  Union  is  engaged.  We  have  sent  out  mis- 
sionaries, as  the  report  shows,  who  have  planted  themselves  in 
countries  which  a  few  years  ago  were  enveloped  in  dense  moral 
darkness.  And  we  look  forward  to  the  day  when  the  whole  heathen 
world  will  be  enlightened  by  the  influence  of  this  religion.  The 
work  is  going  forward.  The  tops  of  the  trees  in  heathen  lands 
seem  to  be  illuminated  by  the  sun  of  righteousness,  and  ere  long 
all  nations  shall  receive  the  teachings  of  Christ. 

"Brethren,  let  us  not  cease  in  this  work,  but,  under  that  divine 
injunction  of  our  Saviour  which  requires  us  '  to  do  unto  others  as 
we  would  that  they  should  do  unto  us,'  let  us  increase  our  exer- 
tions to  give  the  Gospel  to  all  people.  And,  at  the  same  time,  let 
us  seek  to  make  this  Christian  land  more  Christian.  One  of  the 
best  means  of  accomplishing  the  work  is  to  have,  regard  to  the 
spiritual  feeling  of  this  meeting.  I  have  had  the  privilege,  since 
our  last  meeting  of  attending  the  anniversary  of  a  similar  institu- 
tion, under  the  patronage  of  another  denomination  of  Christians  — 
the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions.  It 
was  deeply  interesting  and  instructive.    I  have  seen  many  persons 


Ill  3   FAR E WELL  CHARGE.  359 

who  were  present  at  that  meeting,  and  all  confessed  it  to  be  one 
of  the  most  blessed  they  ever  attended.  It  was  because  the  spirit 
of  the  meeting  was  good.  The  two  meetings  of  this  Union  which 
I  have  attended  were  interesting,  because  pervaded  by  the  same 
Christian  spirit.    Let  us  invoke  God  to  preside  over  us." 

There  were  present  at  this  great  meeting  several  honored 
missionaries,  fresh  from  the  field  of  their  work,  and,  be- 
sides these,  others  who  had  just  been  accepted  for  the  ser- 
vice, and  were  now  to  receive  their  instructions.  Follow- 
ing these  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Union,  came  what  may 
be  called  the  farewell  from  the  President.  The  occasion 
itself  was  full  of  interest,  and  some  who  were  not  specially 
attracted  by  the  spirit  and  aim  of  the  meeting,  came  to 
hear  what  the  popular  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  of 
Massachusetts  would  say.  The  great  church  edifice  was 
thronged.  He  felt  the  inspiration  of  the  opportunity,  and 
rose  to  it  grandly. 

The  following  extracts  from  his  impressive  speech  on  that 
occasion,  will  indicate  the  spirit  of  the  whole,  but  the  most 
exact  report  of  his  language  without  the  fire  and  fervor, 
the  pathos  and  power  of  his  almost  impassioned  manner, 
will  not  reproduce  the  effect  it  wrought :  — 

"You  go  on  an  embassy  compared  with  which  all  the  embassies 
of  men  dwindle  into  utter  insignificance.  You  go  forth  as  the 
ambassadors  of  Christ.  You  go  to  crumble  idols  —  to  convey  light 
to  benighted  minds — to  kindle  love  to  God  in  the  souls  of  ungodly 
men.  "Who  can  over-estimate  the  qualifications  requisite  for  such 
a  work  ?  But  your  Lord  has  not  left  you  without  the  instruction 
you  need.  In  his  precepts  you  will  find  all  you  want.  Especially 
remember  what  he  said  to  his  immediate  disciples,  as  he  sent  them 
forth,  — 'Be  ye  wise  as  serpents,  and  harmless  as  doves.'  Let  the 
heathen  see  by  your  daily  deportment ;  by  your  every  word ;  by 
the  very  air  and  motion  of  your  persons,  that  you  are  filled  with 


300  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   UR1GGS. 

love  and  good-will  towards  them.     Be  harmless,  be  courteous,— 
full  of  good  works. 

"  You  have  been  told  that  you  know  not  what  is  before  you. 
And  true,  you  do  not.  But  the  great  Captain  who,  on  so  many 
occasions  heretofore,  has  so  signally  interposed  in  behalf  of  his 
servants,  is  able  to  carry  you  also  safely  through.  Never  forget 
that  no  evil  can  befall  you  like  that  of  betraying  your  Master. 
And  doubt  not  you  will  be  remembered  by  those  you  leave  behind. 
Thought  shall  speed  its  way  through  the  globe  to  meet  you.  The 
fervent,  effectual  prayer  shall  ascend  to  the  mercy-seat  for  you. 
You  shall  never  see  the  day  when  your  brethren  who  sent  you  out 
will  turn  their  backs  on  you.  But  look  higher.  The  Saviour  has 
told  you,  '  Lo,  I  am  with  you  always,  even  unto  the  end^of  the 
world.'  That  almighty  Friend  will  always  be  at  your  side  to  sus- 
tain you. 

"You  go,  brethren,  to  carry  to  perishing  men  the  glad  tidings 
of  salvation.  You  go  to  hold  up  that  crown  before  them,  and 
rouse  them  to  the  holy  ambition  of  wearing  it.  You  go,  under 
God,  to  work  such  changes  that  those  dark  skins  shall  make  the 
snow  to  blush.  Thousands  and  thousands  of  now  benighted 
heathens  shall,  we  trust,  through  the  labors  of  missionaries,  come 
up  from  every  part  of  the  globe  to  receive  that  crown  in  the  last 
great  day. 

"I  am  instructed,  brethren,  to  give  you  the  parting  hand  in  the 
name  of  this  Union.  Accept  it  as  a  pledge  of  the  warm  interest 
with  which  we  shall  follow  you  to  your  respective  stations.  Fare- 
well—farewell! " 

The  felicitous  illustrations  and  incidents  made  use  of  by 
the  speaker,  greatly  moved  the  audience.  Speaking  of  the 
great  missionary,  Apostle  Paul,  he  quoted  his  language, 
"  Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of  righteous- 
ness." Then  pausing  for  a  moment,  till' all  the  vast  audi- 
ence were  breathless  with  expectation  of  his  next  words, 
he  said,  in  full,  deep,  thrilling  tones, — 


A    THRILLIXG   QUEST10X.  361 

"  Is  there  any  one  in  all  this  vast  congregation  who  will 
not  on  that  day  wear  this  crown  of  righteousness  ?  " 

The  effect  was  almost  electric  —  and  excited  feeling,  in 
hundreds  of  throbbing  hearts,  was  relieved  by  gushing 
tears. 

Some  one  a^ter  the  meeting  spoke  to  him  of  the  solemn 
spell  produced  in  the  congregation  by  his  question.  He 
replied,  — 

"  I  saw  it.  It  flashed  into  my  mind,  and  it  produced  the 
precise  effect  upon  the  audience  which  it  did  upon  me." 

As  he  was  leaving  the  church  after  the  adjournment,  he 
overheard  a  gentleman  on  the  pavement  remark  to  a  com- 
panion,— 

44  It  is  strange,  I  think,  that  the  Governor  of  Massachu- 
setts should  be  President  of  a  Baptist  Missionary  Society." 

The  Governor  immediately  turned  and  said,  with  his  own 
affable  smile,  — 

44  Sir,  I  think  it  more  honor  to*be  President  of  a  Baptist 
Missionary  Societv,  than  to  be  Governor  of  Massachusetts." 

And  he  did.  There  was  no  affectation,  no  exaggeration 
in  this  remark.  He  counted  all  the  honors  which  had  been 
bestowed  upon  him  by  a  grateful  community  and  Common- 
wealth as  absolutely  inconsiderable,  when  compared  with 
that  which  the  denomination  he  loved  had  put  upon 
him  in  calling  him  to  preside  over  its  greatest  benevolent 
organization.  It  thrilled  his  ingenuous,  humble  soul 
more  to  be  counted  worthy  to  lead  his  brethren  in  the  great 
spiritual  advance  of  Zion  against  the  kingdom  of  darkness, 
than  it  did  to  represent  Massachusetts  in  Congress,  to  sit 
on  her  proudest  seat  of  power,  or  on  her  judicial  bench. 
He  was  never  more  profoundly  —  while  y et  humbly,  — 
happy,  than  when  he  was  doing  something  for  his  Master. 

31 


3G2  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 


The  meeting:  of  the  "  American  Board  of  Commissioners 
for  Foreign  Missions,"  to  which  he  alluded  in  his  opening 
address,  was  held  at  Pittsfield,  and  was  a  very  interesting 
session  of  that  venerated  body.  Of  his  presence  and  in- 
fluence there,  his  friend  and  neighbor,  Rev.  Dr.  Todd,  gives 
this  pleasing  reminiscence  :  — 

"  It  was  while  he  was  the  presiding  officer  of  this  Missionary 
Union  that  the  American  Board  of  Missions,  in  a  kindred  denomi- 
nation, met  at  Pittsfield.  And  here,  surrounded  by  many  venerable 
and  glorious  fathers  and  many  burning  missionaries,  he  took  a 
lively  part,  and  made  an  address  which  will  never  be  forgotten. 
With  inimitable  good  taste  he  made  not  the  remotest  allusion  to 
his  civil  office  or  honors,  but  greeted  the  Board  as  a  sister,  and 
older  sister  to  his  own." 

Year  after  year,  with  that  fidelity  which  characterized 
his  official  service  in  every  sphere,  he  was  in  the  chair  at 
the  opening  and  the  close  of  the  Union,  aiding  greatly  by 
his  wisdom  and  moderation  the  work  of  the  sessions,  and 
in  times  of  excitement  growing  out  of  discussions  of  mis- 
sionary policy,  proposed  amendments  to  the  Constitution, 
or  other  causes,  his  firm  but  gentle  hand  guided  its  affairs 
successfully,  and  his  peace-loving  spirit  soothed  the  rising 
gusts  of  strife  to  rest. 

Eleven  }Tears  after  the  scenes  in  Buffalo,  at  which  we 
have  glanced,  the  Union  met  in  Brooklyn,  and  the  distin- 
guished ex-Governor  and  now  ex-judge,  went  to  the  solemn 
convocation  with  an  unwonted  solemnity  of  feeling.  It 
was  in  the  spring  of  1861.  The  first  exciting  events  of 
the  rebellion  and  the  war  had  stirred  the  souls  of  all  classes 
of  citizens,  and  created  in  all  thoughtful  minds  profound 
solicitude  for  the  future  of  our  beloved  country. 


THE   UNION  AT  BROOKLYN  IN  1861.  363 

A  great  gloom  was  upon  the  hearts  of  many,  and  Gov- 
ernor Briggs  was  of  this  number  —  though  seldom  suffer- 
ing his  apprehensions  even  to  dim  his  simple  confidence  in 
God,  who  was  his  "  Rock  of  Salvation." 

The  meeting  of  the  "Union"  followed  other  anniver- 
saries of  Baptist  Benevolent  Societies,  and  also  a  general 
meetinsr  of  ministers  and  lavmen,  held  to  consider  the  state 
of  the  country.  This  meeting  had  greatly  excited  the  feel- 
ings of  some,  and  the  waves  of  passion  threatened  to  over- 
whelm that  measure  of  discretion  and  judgment  which  is 
essential  to  right  action. 

In  these  circumstances  the  Union  convened.  The  Presi- 
dent rose  in  the  pulpit.  His  face  and  manner  betrayed  the 
deep  excitement  of  his  soul,  and  the  conflict  of  hope  and 
fear,  through  which  he  had  been  passing  since  the  guilty  re- 
bellion, had  plunged  those  who  should  have  been  brethren 
into  dreadful  strife. 

He  was  greatly  changed,  and  those  who  knew  him  saw 
and  marked  the  change  with  sorrow.  He  was  himself  still 
in  his  calmness,  benignity  of  expression,  and  gentleness 
of  manner  and  speech  ;  but  his  face  was  thin  and  blanched, 
and  his  expressive  eyes  were  sunk.  Even  his  voice  was 
changed,  though  perhaps  only  in  its  vigor. 

Not  a  few  then  present  looked  upon  him  with  sad  fore- 
bodings that  he  would  perhaps  never  again  call  the  Mission- 
ary Union  to  order  for  a  new  anniversary  ;  that  if  his  days 
were  not  ended  before  it  met  again,  he  would  be  too  feeble 
to  preside. 

All  this  visible  decay  of  his  robust  strength  was  not  the 
direct  result  of  mental  anxiety  and  care.  He  was  still 
physically  feeble  from  a  slight  experience  of  sunstroke  the 
previous  summer,  which  he  took  reverently  as  a  summons 


3(34  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

to  him  to  "  set  his  house  in  order,"  and  to  do  his  work  as 
if  he  must  speedily  render  an  account  of  his  stewardship. 
He  wTas  preparing  even  now  to  do  this. 

The  very  tones  of  his  voice  had  something  of  eternity  in 
them,  while  he  directed  all  hearts  and  thoughts  and  desires 
to  God  as  the  only  source  of  wisdom,  strength,  and  salva- 
tion. 

He  prefaced  the  opening  exercises  by  narrating,  in  a 
most  impressive  manner,  the  following  anecdote,  which 
was  communicated  to  Stephen  Gillett,  the  Quaker  preacher, 
by  a  friend  in  Russia  :  — 

"  Shortly  after  Napoleon  entered  Russia,  and  a  cloud  of  dark- 
ness settled  on  that  empire,  when  the  Emperor  was  about  yielding, 
some  one  reported  to  him  that  a  certain  prince  was  acting  the  part 
of  a  traitor ;  for,  while  all  St.  Petersburg  was  in  anxiety  and 
terror,  he  was  fitting  up  and  repairing  his  magnificent  palaces. 
The  Emperor  sent  for  the  prince  and  inquired  into  the  matter. 
'  It  is  not  so,  your  Majesty,'  said  he.  '  How,  then,  are  you  making 
these  preparations  for  future  prosperity?'  'Because,'  said  he,  'I 
trust  in  God,  that  everything  will  yet  be  brought  about,  and  peace 
and  prosperity  will  be  restored.'  '  How  is  this?'  'Because  the 
Bible  instructs  me  to  put  my  trust  in  Him.'  *  What  do  you  mean 
by  the  Bible  ? '  He  took  a  Bible  which  lay  near  him,  and  which 
accidentally  dropped  on  the  floor,  and  opened  as  it  fell.  He  took 
it  up,  saying,  'I  will  read  to  your  Majesty  the  chapter  which  has 
opened,  and  this  will  show  you  what  I  mean  by  the  Bible.'  He 
then  read  the  ninety-first  psalm.  The  reading  made  a  deep  impres- 
sion on  the  Emperor.  Before  leaving  St.  Petersburg,  the  Emperor 
repaired  to  the  largest  church  in  the  city.  Much  to  his  surprise, 
the  priest  read  the  ninety-first  psalm.  After  the  service,  the  Em- 
peror sent  for  the  priest,  and  inquired  how  he  came  to  select 
that  chapter.  'Who  directed  such  a  selection?'  'Nobody,  your 
Majesty;  I  sought  direction  from  God  what  to  read,  and  I  thought 
He  directed  me.'     More  confounded  than  before,  the  Emperor  left 


HIS   OPENING   SPEECH.  oG 5 

and  proceeded  on  his  journey.  At  night,  arriving  at  another 
town,  he  entered  a  church,  where,  behold!  the  priest  read  the 
ninety-first  psalm.  Amazed  at  the  occurrence,  he  sent  to  this 
priest  also,  and  inquired,  '  Who  directed  you  to  read  that  psalm?' 
; Nobody,  your  Majesty;  I  did  it  because  I  thought  I  was  directed 
to  it  by  God,  as  appropriate  to  the  times.'  The  Emperor  was 
overwhelmed ;  and  from  that  day  became  a  religious  man.  And 
ever  after  he  kept  a  Bible  in  his  room,  which  he  read  morning  and 
evening.  The  narrative  was  printed  in  a  tract,  with  the  psalm 
in  question,  and  millions  of  copies  were  distributed  throughout 
Russia." 

He  then  read,  with  great  effect,  and  in  an  almost  audible 
silence,  the  ninety-first  psalm ;  after  which,  he  made  the 
usual  address  of  greeting,  marked  by  wisdom  that,  to  the 
thoughtful,  seemed  freshly  inspired  from  heaven.  His 
allusions  to  the  state  of  the  country  were  most  impressive, 
displaying  a  firm  and  lofty  patriotism,  blending  with  pro- 
found sorrow  for  the  unhappy  misconceptions  of  Northern 
spirit  and  temper,  which  had  led  the  South  to  rebellion, 
and  constrained  the  Government  to  the  dread  alternative 
of  war  for  its  defence.  We  quote  a  part  of  this  admirable 
address :  — 

"  By  the  kind  providence  of  God  we  are  brought  together  to 
attend  another  anniversary.  The  simple  purpose  of  our  organiza- 
tion is  the  promotion  of  the  religion  of  Christ.  It  is  declared  by 
our  constitution  to  be  the  sole  object  of  the  society  to  extend  the 
Redeemer's  kingdom,  by  means  of  missions  among  the  heathen. 
Can  we  meet  for  a  higher,  a  holier,  a  better  object?  It  becomes 
us,  then,  to  act  in  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel  which  we  aim  to  pro- 
mote ;  to  come  in  the  spirit  of  Christ,  the  author  of  the  Bible, 
which  is  indispensable  to  success  in  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel 
as  it  is  in  the  progress  of  the  religious  life.  '  For  if  any  man  have 
not  the  spirit  of  Christ,  he  is  none  of  his.'  If  we  are  assembled 
to  promote  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  we  must  be  influenced, 

31* 


o\Jb  MEMOIR    uF   GEORGE   X.    BRIGGS. 

directed,  and  controlled  by  that  Spirit,  or  we  have  no  hope  of 
success.  In  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  the  country  we  may  ex- 
pect that  our  assembly  will  be  smaller  than  usual ;  but  we  have  the 
sweet  consolation  that  those  who  are  here  have  come  with  hearts 
devoted  to  the  great  purposes  of  the  Union.  And  I  may  ask  that 
the  time  be  sacredly,  honestly,  sincerely,  and  earnestly  devoted  to 
the  claims  of  the  missionary  cause.  It  is  not  unkind  to  say  that 
for  several  years  past,  the  great  and  solemn  objects  of  our  associa- 
tion have  been  kept  in  the  background,  while  other  and  collateral 
subjects  have  absorbed  our  attention.  For  the  sake  of  the  cause, 
for  the  sake  of  its  Author,  I  beg  that  no  more  time  may  be  so 
consumed. 

"We  are  assembled  here  to-day  under  such  circumstances  as 
never  before.  I  hope  I  shall  go  down  to  my  grave  before  such  a 
state  of  things  occurs  again.  The  country  is  flooded  with  armed 
men ;  families  are  leaving  their  homes  ;  soldiers  with  their  guns  are 
flying  to  the  field  of  conflict :  the  American  flag  floats  over  every 
street  and  village  and  community  in  our  land.  Patriotism  sways 
the  heart  of  even"  youth  and  every  man  of  every  age.  All  are  ral- 
lying to  the  support  of  the  Government,  of  law,  and  of  order.  I 
am  amazed  and  excited  at  this  outburst  of  patriotism.  Oh.  while 
we  gather  around  the  standard  of  our  country  with  such  enthusi- 
asm, shall  the  standard  of  the  Prince  of  Peace  be  deserted?  It  is 
not  right.  I  would  that  the  Christian  host,  wherever  the  standard 
of  Christianity  waves,  might  gather  to  its  defence.  How  ardently 
is  tins  to  be  desired.  If  our  cause  is  just  in  this  conflict  with  the 
South,  as  we  believe ;  if  it  please  God,  He  will  cause  it  to  succeed. 
Let  us  so  conduct  that  we  may  compel  our  brethren  in  arms  to 
respect  us.  I  feel  that  the  great  difficulty  is  an  entire  misappre- 
hension of  our  brethren  of  the  South  of  the  feeling  of  the  North 
toward  them.  I  wish  the  heart  of  the  North  could  be  uncovered 
to  the  South.     If  it  were  so,  the  trouble  would  end  at  once." 

One  of  the  returned  missionaries  of  the  Union,  who  met 
Governor  Briggs  for  the  first  time  at  this  anniversary,  after- 
wards saidof  him.  "  That  good  man  seemed  to  have  more  of 

the  spirit  of  the  Master  than  all  the  ministers  present."     It 


THE  NEXT  MEETING  AXD    THE    VACANT  CHAIR.         S67 

was,  indeed,  the  spirit  of  Christ  that  characterized  him.  and, 
perhaps,  especially  during  that  session  of  the  Convention, 
•when  the  foundations  of  the  Republic  seemed  to  him  to  be 
shaking  under  his  feet. 

When  the  Union  met  again,1  he  was  not  in  the  chair. 
The  forebodings  of  those  who  saw  the  change  in  him  at 
Brooklyn  were  realized.  His  earthly  work  was  then  well 
nigh  done,  and  before  the  anniversary  returned  he  had 
gone  to  render  up  his  account.  His  absence  from  the  chair 
and  from  the  scenes  he  was  so  closely  identified  with, 
threw  a  veil  of  sadness  over  that  occasion. 

The  new  President,2  in  his  opening  remarks,  made  the 
following  allusion  to  his  distinguished,  but  departed,  prede- 
cessor :  — 

"When  I  remember  who  it  was  that  for  fifteen  years,  by  your 
willing  suffrages,  occupied  this  chair,  and  how  he  honored  it.  and 
how  you  delighted  to  honor  him.  —  especially  when  I  remember 
the  affluence  of  his  virtues,  his  unostentatious  piety,  the  beautiful 
simplicity  of  his  life,  his  blameless  innocence,  his  ardent  devotion 
to  the  cause  of  missions,  his  active  yet  modest  benevolence, 
exhausting  itself  in  deeds  of  charity  and  love.  —  deeply  conscious 
of  my  own  inferior  qualifications,  I  tremble  at  my  own  temerity  in 
venturing  to  assume  the  position. 

"  It  is  not  for  me,  on  this  occasion,  to  pronounce  the  panegyric 
of  my  lamented  predecessor.  Others  have  already  performed  that 
sad  but  grateful  office.  Eloquent  lips  have  portrayed  his  exalted 
virtues.     Your  tears  and  sorrows  have  embalmed  his  memory. 

"  For  more  than  half  my  life  it  was  my  happiness  to  enjoy  the 
personal  friendship  of  Governor  Briggs.  I  cherish  the  recollection 
of  his  great  and  varied  excellences  with  the  tenderest  reverence. 
Happy  would  it  be  for  us  all,  if  from  the  fading  vision  we  could 
still  catch  a  more  holy  enthusiasm." 

lln  Providence,  May,  1S62. 

2  Hon.  Ira  Harris,  of  Albany,  N.  Y. 


,308  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

When  the  Committee  on  Obituaries,  in  their  report,  paid 
a  beautiful  tribute  to  his  memory,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Stow,  of 
Boston,  moved  its  acceptance  and  publication,  and  closed 
his  personal  tribute  to  his  worth  with  these  words :  — 

"  All  remember  his  opening  and  other  addresses  at  these  meet- 
ings, —  tender,  kind,  genial,  and  eloquent.  We  shall  never  forget 
his  opening  address  at  Brooklyn  last  year.  He  has  gone  to  his 
rest,  more  honored  for  his  usefulness  in  the  church,  and  having  a 
larger  amount  of  respect  in  Massachusetts,  than  any  son  who  sleeps 
beneath  her  soil." 

The  suavity  and  equity  of  his  rulings  and  decisions,  in 
the  sometimes  excited  sessions  of  the  great  representative 
body  over  which  he  presided  for  fifteen  years,  were  the 
theme  of  grateful  and  general  acknowledgment.  One  of 
the  secretaries  of  the  Union 1  at  the  time  of  his  first  taking 
the  chair,  said  of  him,  in  a  funeral  memorial :  — 

"  Our  relations  to  the  Missionary  Union,  and  to  him  as  its  pre- 
siding officer  on  that  and  several  subsequent  years,  gave  us  the 
best  possible  opportunity  to  see  and  to  know  him  in  circumstances 
that  would  be  likely  to  test  some  of  the  great  qualities  of  his  mind 
and  heart ;  for  those  were  years  in  which  questions  of  mission- 
ary organization,  of  policy,  and  of  administration,  agitated  our 
churches  and  public  meetings  as  they  have  not  done  at  any  later 
period.  We  know  that  he  had  very  positive  opinions  of  his  own 
upon  these  questions ;  but  we  can  testify  that  we  never  knew  him, 
in  all  these  years  of  trial  and  peril,  to  swerve  in  a  single  instance 
from  the  line  of  an  honorable  impartiality  in  discharging  the  deli- 
cate and  difficult  duties  of  presiding  officer. 

"  His  ability  to  preside  well  was  pre-eminent ;  and  the  conscious- 
ness on  all  sides  that  this  ability  was  combined  with  the  highest 
integrit}',  and  the  largest  measure  of  practical  good  sense,  gave 

iRev.  Edward  Bright,  D.  D.,  editor  of  the  "  Examiner." 


TRIBUTES.  369 

his  decisions  the  weight  of  oracles.  No  man  ever  appealed  from 
them,  however  much  he  may  have  regretted  that  they  were  not 
more  favorable  to  his  side  of  the  question.  Indeed,  from  the  year 
1848,  no  one  arrangement  was  deemed  so  essential  to  a  good  meet- 
ing of  the  Missionary  Union,  as  to  be  sure  of  having  the  President 
himself  in  the  chair." 

This  chapter  might  be  extended  with  many  other  pleasant 
and  profitable  reminiscences  of  his  interest  and  labors  in 
the  great  cause  of  missions.  But  here,  as  in  all  the  special 
aspects  of  his  life-work,  a  circumscribed  selection  of  inci- 
dent and  material  has  been  necessary  to  prevent  the  growth 
of  this  Memoir  into  too  large  a  bulk. 

His  missionary  spirit  and  efforts  were  alike  memorable  ; 
and  the  church  inscribes  them  in  its  records,  and  holds 
them  in  its  remembrance,  with  unfeigned  gratitude  to  God. 


CHAPTER   XXX. 


THE  GLOOM  OF  REBELLION  —  GOVERNOR  BRIGGS  UXDER  ITS  SHADOW  — DI- 
VINE CONSOLATION — THE  SEVENTY-SEVENTH  PSALM  —  ASSUMED  CHEER- 
FULNESS—  LETTER  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  —  LETTER  TO  A  SOUTHERNER  —  HIS 
SIXTY-FIFTH  BIRTHDAY  —  HIS  DAUGHTER'S  FURTHER  MEMORIALS  — HIS 
SON  TAKES  THE  FIELD  —  THE  GOLD  LOCKET  —  SORROW  AT  HOME  —  INFLU- 
ENCE ON  GOVERNOR  BRIGGS — HEALTHFUL  REACTION. 


^HE  }Tear  1861  dawned  upon  the  land  in  gloom  and 


trouble.  The  rebellion,  forever  memorable  here- 
^yo^   after  in  the  annals  of  history,  for  its  vast  extent, 

vri>    its   great   persistence,  its  terrible   accessories,  its 

^i  wonderful  moral  results  ;  and  all  these  surpassed 
in  the  wanton  criminality  of  its  design  and  origin,  was 
really  inaugurated  in  the  secession  of  South  Carolina. 
Each  successive  step  of  the  nielanchory  progress  excited 
fresh  wonder  and  apprehension  in  the  minds  of  patriots 
throughout  the  States,  uninfected  b}r  the  breath  of  treason. 

These  conditions  of  gloom  and  alarm  affected  Governor 
Briggs  very  deeply,  as  the  reader  has  already  gathered 
from  the  preceding  chapter.  In  his  own  quiet  home  especial- 
ly, every  fresh  rumor  of  trouble  and  every  new  measure  of 
incipient  revolution  assumed,  to  his  excited  and  nervous 
temperament,  proportions  of  terror. 

It  is  remembered  that  when  he  first  saw  in  print  the  fiery, 
wicked  message  which  Senator  Toombs,  of  Georgia,  sent 
from  Washington  to  his  constituents,  he  rose  and  paced 
the  floor  of  his  library  in  exceeding  agitation  of  spirit,  de- 

370 


ASSUMED   CHEERFULXESS.  371 

ploring  the  madness  which  as  he  expressed  it,  would  "  fire 
the  magazine." 

From  day  to  day  his  depression  increased,  doubtless 
aided  by  his  physical  weakness.  On  one  occasion  he  said 
to  his  children,  speaking  of  the  condition  of  public  affairs, 
11  The  die  is  cast,  and  we  are  all  gone." 

Although  he  took  at  times  more  hopeful  views  of  the 
case,  he  passed  the  early  months  of  the  year  in  a  despond- 
ency of  mind,  from  which  nothing  but  the  consolations  of 
religion  availed  effectually  to  rouse  him.  For  weeks  he 
heard  the  mntterings  of  the  approaching  storm,  and  could 
find  no  comfort  except  in  prayer  and  meditation  upon  God's 
faithfulness. 

At  these  times  he  read,  continually,  such  psalms  as  the 
seventy-seventh,1  and  in  his  favorite  Bible  the  fourth  verse 
of  this  psalm  was  marked  completely  round  with  his  pencil, 
"  TIwu  hohlest  mine  eyes  leaking.  I  am  so  troubled  that  I 
cannot  speak.'" 

His  son  says  that  this  was  literally  his  experience,  and 
that  his  apprehension  and  grief,  in  reference  to  the  progress 
and  prospect  of  the  national  troubles,  seemed,  at  one  time, 
likely  to  produce  serious  illness. 

His  letters  of  this  period,  however,  reflect  but  little  of 
this  gloom.  He  seems  to  have  assumed  a  cheerfulness  he 
did  not  feel,  that  he  might  not  cast  shadows  upon  the  hearts 
of  others. 

He  writes  thus  to  his  daughter  :  — 

Pittsfield,  Feb.  6th,  1861. 
My  dear  Daughter  : 

Your  mother  and  I  are  in  the  library  solitary  and  alone.     Both 
1  "  I  cried  unto  God  with  my  voice,  &c." 


372  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

families,  by  the  blessing  of  our  Heavenly  Father,  are  in  usual 

health.     Henry  is  much  engaged  with  his  company,1  resolved  to 

be  in  readiness  for  any  demands  the  country  may  make  upon  him. 

I  hope  it  will  be  with  him,  as  General  Root,  of  New  York,  wished 

it  might  be  with  the  militia  of  New  York.     On  the  occasion  of  a 

military  dinner,  a  captain  arose  and  proposed  as  a  sentiment,  — 

"The  militia  of  the  Slate  of  New  York;  may  they  never  want, 

and "  he  hesitated,  stammered,  and  repeated,  "  The  militia  of 

New  York ;  may  they  never  want,  and  —  and "  till  the  suspense 

becoming  painful  to  the  company,  General  Root  roared  out,  "  never 

be  wanted." 

Nothing  new  in  town.  Dr.  T.  has  been  quite  sick  with  diphtheria. 

He  is  doing  well.     Several  persons  were  talking  about  the  good 

things  that    had  been  sent  him,  naming,  especially,  brandy  and 

port-wine.     C.  R.  was  present,  and  said  he  guessed  the  doctor 

would  get  along,  if  he  did  not  die  of  delirium  tremens !     The  joke 

delighted  the  Doctor.    Love  to  Charles. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  following  letter  was  addressed  to  a  Southern  gentle- 
man with  whom  he  had  formed  an  agreeable  friendship,  and 
maintained  a  correspondence  for  years.  It  possesses  great 
interest,  as  a  reflection  of  his  opinions  at  that  critical  junc- 
ture, and  also  as  an  expression  of  his  views  as  to  the  moral 
position  of  Massachusetts  towards  the  disaffected  States  : — 

PiTTsriELD,  Feb.  20,  1861. 
Dear  Sir  : 

Your  letter  of  last  July  was  received.  I  did  not  answer  it  be- 
cause I  was  in  poor  health  most  of  the  summer,  and  scarcely  had 
the  spirit  to  answer  a  letter,  and  because,  if  I  had,  I  could  not 
have  concurred  with  you  in  your  views  of  the  questions  of  the 

l  The  Allen  Guard.  This  was  the  first  company  from  "Western  Massachusetts, 
to  march  for  the  defence  of  Washington.  It  was  under  the  command  of  Capt. 
Henry  S.  Briggs. 


LETTER   TO  A   SOUTHERNER.  Oto 

day.  The  reception  of  it  gave  me  much  pleasure,  for  it  was  evi- 
dence that  I  was  remembered  by  one  whose  views  I  had  much  re- 
spected. Yours  of  the  25th  ult.  was  also  received,  but  by  some 
accident  I  did  not  get  it  until  some  days  after  it  arrived.  I  was 
gratified  at  its  reception  for  the  same  reason  that  I  was  with  the 
other.  The  pleasure  was  mingled  with  deep  sadness  —  you  told 
me  you  wrote  from  a  "  foreign  country!"  Then  yoi.  and  I  have 
no  longer  one  common  country !  As  soon  as  those  who  fought 
and  bled  for  a  common  country  are  in  their  graves,  their  children 
have  rent  that  country  asunder !  The  bones  of  Greene  now  lie  in  a 
country  foreign  from  that  of  his  birth !  Can  these  things  be  ?  and 
yet  you  say  it  is  settled !  You  stated  in  brief,  what  the  South  re- 
garded as  justification  for  so  important  a  procedure  of  breaking  up 
this  Union.  I  thought  at  first  I  would,  in  reply,  state  to  you  what 
we  at  the  North  regarded  as  the  true  state  of  the  case,  but  on  the 
whole  concluded  it  would  not  be  useful,  and  do  not  do  it. 

But,  my  friend  (for  such  I  trust  I  may  truly  call  you,  until  we 
shall  meet  in  a  world  where  the  question  of  slavery  will  not  mar 
our  Union  or  alloy  our  happiness),  I  will  say  to  you  that  I  believe 
and  am  quite  sure  that  the  people  of  the  South  are  entirely  misled 
and  deceived  as  to  the  intentions  and  feelings  of  the  people  of  the 
North  towards  them.  The  people  of  the  North  are  opposed  to 
slavery  because  they  believe  it  to  be  morally  and  politically  wrong. 
The}*  believe  it  to  be  a  local  institution,  belonging  entirely  to  the 
States  where  it  exists,  and  that  they  have  not  only  no  right  to 
interfere  with  it  there,  but  they  have  no  intention,  wish,  or  desire 
to  interfere  with  it  there.  To  its  extension  into  free  territory  they 
are  opposed,  because  they  believe  it  wrong,  and  because  they 
believe  also  that  the  South  has  no  constitutional  right  to  demand 
that  it  should  go  there,  and  they  believe  that  she  has  no  right  to 
ask  it  on  the  ground  of  good  neighborhood ;  because  they  believe 
that  those  who  formed  the  Constitution  expected  and  believed  that 
before  a  very  long  period  the  institution  of  slavery  would,  by  the 
action  of  those  who  then  sustained  it,  become  extinct.  That  is 
the  reason  why  there  is  nothing  in  that  Constitution  from  which 
any  strangers  to  our  institutions  could  have  known  there  was 
such  a  one  as  slavery. 

32 


374  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

When  the  Constitution  was  adopted,  slavery,  by  almost  the 
unanimous  action  of  the  four  Southern  slave  States,  had  been 
forever  abolished  from  every  foot  of  territory  that  belonged  to 
the  United  States.  Thus  the  Union  and  the  Constitution  began. 
Has  the  South  any  ground  of  complaint  of  the  action  of  the  Gen- 
eral Government  towards  her  since  then?  Nine  new  slave  States 
have  been  admitted,  and  five  of  them  out  of  territory  acquired 
since  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution.  Has  not  the  South  had 
her  full  share  in  every  department  of  the  Government  ?  Is  the 
election  of  a  President  according  to  the  forms  of  the  Constitution, 
without  an  official  act  on  his  part,  good  cause  to  dissolve  the 
Union?  Massachusetts  is  probably  as  anti-slavery  in  opinion  as 
any  other  State ;  and  yet  I  declare  to  you,  I  have  never  heard  any 
man  in  Massachusetts  express  an  intention,  or  wish  in  any  manner, 
to  interfere  with  slavery  or  the  rights  of  slaveholders  in  the  slave 
States.  In  Massachusetts,  at  this  moment,  there  are  no  feelings 
among  her  people  but  those  of  kindness  and  good-will  towards 
the  people  of  your  State.  Any  citizen  of  Georgia  could  at  this 
moment  pass  through,  mingle  with  our  people,  and  express  with- 
out reserve  his  opinion  upon  any  of  the  topics  of  the  day,  without 
receiving  any  incivility  or  interruption.  Even  Toombs  might 
again  speak  in  Faneuil  Hall  without  interruption.  Massachusetts 
has  heretofore  passed  a  Personal  Liberty  Bill,  which  has  never  been 
put  in  force.  The  law  was  not  passed  with  the  intention  of  oppos- 
ing the  Fugitive  Slave  Law,  bad  and  offensive  as  that  law  is,  —  but 
for  the  protection  of  our  own  citizens.  Parts  of  that  personal 
liberty  law  I  believe  to  be  unconstitutional,  and  ought  not  to  have 
been  passed,  and  ought  at  once  to  be  repealed  for  that  reason. 
Those  parts  of  it,  I  believe,  would  not  be  sustained  by  our  courts, 
if  questions  under  it  sh&uld  ever  arise.  The  South  has  never  been 
injured  by  it,  and  in  my  view  it  furnishes  no  reason  for  breaking  up 
the  Union.  Massachusetts  believes  the  South  under  the  Constitu- 
tion is  entitled  to  a  reasonable  fugitive  slave  law,  which  ought  to 
be  carried  out.  But  she  believes  slavery  is  wrong,  and  will  go  no 
further  in  that  matter,  or  any  other,  than  to  fulfil  her  constitutional 
obligations.  With  these  views,  the  South  had  no  right  to  ask 
them  to  go  any  further.     I  tell  you  again,  my  friend,  the  people  of 


HIS  SIXTY-FIFTH  BIRTHDAY.  375 

Georgia  are  mistaken  as  to  the  feelings  and  intentions  of  the 
people  of  Massachusetts  towards  them.  If  you  could  mingle 
among  them  at  this  time  you  would  be  satisfied  of  the  truth  of 
this  assertion. 

But  you  say  the  die  is  cast,  and  you  wish  to  avoid  war.  I  fully 
concur  with  you.  Let  me  say  to  you,  my  dear  sir,  in  all  this  mat- 
ter, it  is  the  South  who  has  talked  and  acted  violence.  Has  she 
not  with  violence  seized  the  forts,  arsenals,  and  magazines  of  the 
Government,  plundered  its  mint  and  seized  its  money  and  threat- 
ened blood  ?  The  North  believes  the  Government  has  the  right  to 
protect  its  property  and  execute  its  laws,  —  with  all  the  provoca- 
tion received,  has  it  done  any  violence  ?  I  think  the  general  senti- 
ment of  the  North  is  against  war  and  blood.  God  grant  it  may 
always  be.  With  all  the  excitement  and  warlike  movements  at 
the  South,  you  would  be  surprised  to  witness  the  quiet  of  the 
North. 

Compare  the  calm,  conciliatory  and  friendly  language  of  the 
President  elect,  on  his  way  to  his  official  station,  with  the  language 
and  tone  of  the  new  President  of  the  new  Confederacy.  What  a 
contrast !  I  need  not  ask  you  which  accords  best  with  your  own 
feelings.  Mr.  Davis  may  some  time  learn  that  such  language 
neither  excites  fear  nor  creates  respect  at  the  North. 

Our  national  condition  is  sad  and  gloomy.  I  fear  that  we  have 
all  so  under-estimated  our  numerous  blessings,  and  been  so  for- 
getful of  the  bountiful  Giver,  that  He  is  about  to  leave  us  to  bring 
upon  ourselves,  by  our  own  madness,  the  chastisement  which  we 
deserve.  But  He  reigns  and  will  reign.  He  can  make  the  wrath 
of  man  to  praise  Him,  and  the  remainder  of  wrath  He  will  restrain. 

Let  the  political  commotions  be  what  they  may,  my  dear  sir, 

may  you  and  I  cherish  love  for  our  Master  and  love  for  each  other. 

Very  truly,  your  friend, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 


Here  is  one  of  his  birth-day  letters.  It  was  his  habit  to 
commemorate  these  occasions  in  his  correspondence  with 
those  dearest  to  him,  and  to  make  them  times  of  spiritual 


376  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE   X.  BRIGGS. 

retrospection.     His  habitual  self-depreciation  is  apparent 
in  this  letter  :  — 

Pittsfield,  12th  April,  1861. 
My  dear  Sox  : 

Henry  received  your  letter  last  night.  He  expects  to  leave  for 
Lawrence  at  3  p.  m.,  with  Mary  and  Harry  and  Mamie  and  little 
Xelly.  I  suggested  to  your  mother  that  she  had  better  go  with  the 
goers ;  but  I  suppose  she  thinks  I  shall  not  be  able  to  keep  house 
without  her. 

This  clay  I  am  sixty-five  years  old.  How  old !  and  yet  how  little 
have  I  done  that  I  ought  to  have  done  —  nothing!  And  yet  how 
good  and  merciful  has  God  been  to  me  and  mine.  If  One  who  is 
worthy  were  not  our  Advocate,  how  desperate  would  be  human 
hopes !  Rowland  Hill  said,  if  he  ever  got  to  heaven,  it  would  be 
by  crawling  in  on  his  hands  and  knees.  How  inspiring  the  thought 
that  we  may  one  day,  with  Bunyan's  Pilgrim,  look  upon  Him  who 
was  spit  upon,  and  who  wore  the  crown  of  thorns  — wearing  the 
diadem  of  the  universe !  To  be  the  humblest,  and  to  occupy  the 
lowest  place  in  the  numberless  throng  of  the  redeemed,  will  be  all 
that  I  could  ask. 

Good  Dr.  Humphrey's  funeral  was  numerously  attended,  on 
Monday.  Dr.  Todd  preached  an  excellent  sermon.  On  Monday 
night  the  widow  of  John  Humphrey,  who  was  visiting  at  the  doc- 
tor's late  residence,  died  very  suddenly.  She  has  been  ill  a  long 
time ;  but  no  immediate  clanger  was  apprehended.  She  went  with- 
out a  moment's  warning.  S.  said  3-esterday,  she  could  not  but 
think  with  what  a  sweet  smile  of  surprise  her  father  would  meet 
her  in  heaven  as  he  would  say  "  Why,  daughter,  have  you  come  so 
soon! " 

The  doctor,  all  things  considered,  I  think,  was  for  worth  and 

wisdom  second  to  no  human  I  being  I  ever  knew. 

Affectionately,  j'our  father, 

G.  X.  Briggs. 

His  daughter  here  becomes,  again,  his  biographer.  She 
says,  — 


HIS  DAUGHTER'S  FURTHER  MEMORIALS.  oil 

"  The  blows  that  had  fallen  on  Fort  Sumter  and  our  dishonored 
flag  there,  had  passed,  every  one  of  them,  like  electric  throbs 
through  every  fibre  of  Massachusetts. 

"The  first  call  of  President  Lincoln  for  seventy-five  thousand 
troops  was  heard  at  Bunker  Hill,  though  it  had  not  reached  the 
hills  of  Berkshire:  Returning  at  an  unusual  hour  in  the  afternoon 
of  April  18th,  from  his  customary  walk  to  the  village,  my  father 
brought,  open  in  his  hand,  a  long,  narrow  ribbon  of  paper,  inscribed 
by  the  telegraphic  fingers  with  words  which  were  among  those 
that  thrilled  the  hearts  of  many  who  dwelt  in  peaceful  New  Eng- 
land homes.     They  ran  thus  :  — 

"  'Boston,  April  18,  1861. 
"  'George  N.  Briggs,  Pittsfield,  Mass. : 

"  '  Probably  I  shall  pass  Springfield,  not  coming  home.  Come 
to  Springfield  with  mother  and  the  children.  Get  Georgie's  and 
Harry's  Daguerreot3*pes  on  one  plate,  for  a  locket.1    Bring  my  uni- 

IThis  locket  was  the  occasion  of  an  interesting  incident  at  the  Battle  of  Fair 
Oaks ;  and  gave  rise  to  the  following  correspondence  between  General  Briggs 
and  Colonel  Jenkins,  —  the  latter,  a  youthful  and  gallant  soldier,  was  killed  in 
the  Battle  of  the  Wilderness  :  — 

"Head-quarters  Palmetto  Sharpshooters. 
"  Colonel : 

"  Having  obtained  from  one  of  my  men  a  medallion,  containing,  I  presume, 
the  likenesses  of  your  family,  I  return  the  same  to  you.  The  medallion  was 
found  in  your  camp,  in  which  my  regiment  slept  the  night  after  the  battle  of  the 
31st  ult.;  and,  though  willing  to  meet  you  ever  in  the  field  while  acting  as  a  foe 
to  my  country,  I  do  not  war  with  your  personal  feelings ;  and,  supposing  the 
medallion  to  be  prized  by  you,  I  take  pleasure  in  returning  it. 

"  M.  Jenkins,  Col.  Palmetto  Sharpshooters. 

"  Col.  H.  S.  Briggs,  Colonel  10th  Mass.  Yols." 

"In  Camp  near  Sharpsburg,  Md.,  Oct.  7,  1802. 
"  General  : 

"On  a  visit,  yesterday,  to  head-quarters  of  the  10th  Regiment  Mass.  Vols., 
formerly  commanded  by  me,  and  from  which  I  had  been  separated  by  wounds 
received  at  the  Battle  of  Seven  Pines  on  the  31st  of  May  last,  I  found  a  note 
from  you,  as  commander  of  the  Palmetto  Sharpshooters,  accompanying  a  much- 
prized  locket,  containing,  as  you  conjectured,  the  likenesses  of  my  family.  By 
some  unaccountable  negligence  on  the  part  of  those  to  whom  it  was  committed, 
the  execution  of  your  kind  intentions  has  been  delayed.    I  trust  the  delay  in  the 

32* 


378  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.    BRIGGS. 

form.     Coat,   sword,  belt,   sash,   hat,  epaulets,  are  in  the  office ; 

fatigue-coat  and  cap  in  the  armory ;  pants  in  the  wardrobe  at  home. 

Let  Georgie  find  them. 

"  <H.  S.  Briggs.' 

"  But  few  words  were  spoken  in  the  household.  Children's 
heads  and  hearts  grew  suddenly  old,  and  were  busy,  as  were  older 
hands,  in  making  hurried  preparations  for  departure.  In  the 
mean  time,  the  young  fair  faces  were  copied,  with  the  shadow  of 
pain  upon  them  which  the  hour  had  left  there ;  and  at  evening  our 
father  and  mother,  with  Georgie  and  Harry,  were  hastening  to 
Springfield,  for  the  meeting  and  the  farewell.  A  train  from  the 
east  brought  its  throng  of  stifled,  struggling,  resolute  souls,  —  sol- 
diers and  citizens,  men,  women,  and  children. 

"  My  brother  was  not  in  his  place  when  a  cause  in  which  he  was 
engaged '  was  resumed,  in  the  Supreme  Court  in  Boston,  on  the 
morning  of  the  19th  of  April.  '  "Where  is  Mr.  Briggs?'  demanded 
the  Chief  Justice;  and  the  response  was,  '  Gone,  at  the  head  of  his 
company,  to  "Washington.' 

"  That  morning,  with  wife  and  little  children  and  his  brother, 
he  had  taken  the  cars  from  Boston  to  Springfield.     Awaiting  him 

receipt  of  the  locket  and  your  note,  will  be  a  sufficient  apology  for  my  long  delay 
in  acknowledging  the  favor  you  have  conferred  upon  me. 

"  I  beg  to  assure  you  of  my  high  appreciation  of  the  generous  magnanimity 
and  delicate  courtesy  of  your  act,  and  to  thank  you,  with  all  my  heart,  for 
the  restoration  of  that,  in  comparison  with  which  all  other  loss  of  effects  on  that 
day  was  of  no  consequence. 

"  You  will  pardon  me  if  I  say,  in  alluding  to  a  paragraph  in  your  note,  that  I 
cannot,  without  pain,  contemplate  the  meeting  as  a  foe,  even  on  the  field,  one 
who  has  performed  so  honorable  an  act,  and  conferred  on  me  so  great  a  favor. 

"  I  cannot  say  that  I  desire  the  opportunity  to  requite  the  favor  under  similar 
circumstances,  but  I  will  assure  you,  that,  should  any  opportunity  ever  occur,  I 
shall  improve  it  with  pleasure  and  alacrity.  Until  then,  and  ever,  I  shall  hold 
you  and  your  deed  of  kindness  in  grateful  remembrance. 

"  I  am,  sir,  very  respectfully,  your  ob't  serv*r, 

"  Henry  S.  Briggs,  Brig.  Gen.  Vols.  U.  S.  A. 
"Gen.  M.  Jenkins." 

iThis  cause  was  the  famous  Elephant  case,  to  which  allusion  is  made  in  Chap- 
ter XXII.  It  was  now  on  trial  in  the  Supreme  Court,  and  Henry  S.  Briggs, 
Esq.,  was  conducting  the  case  for  the  plaintiff. 


HIS  SON  TAKES   THE  FIELD.  379 

there,  were  his  own  '  Allen  Guard,'  summoned,  only  a  few  hours 
before,  from  the  farms  and  workshops  and  stores  and  offices  and 
homes  of  beautiful  Pittsfleld ;  and,  without  delay,  they  hastened  to 
Baltimore,  for  they  had  heard  of  the  baptism  of  blood  there  on  the 
19th  of  April. 

"A  'bruised  reed' was  our  father  that  day.  Our  mother  was 
tearless.  Death  could  not  have  made  the  cottage  home  on  the 
hillside  more  empty,  when  they,  with  the  soldier's  wife  and  chil- 
dren, kindled  among  the  ashes  of  happier  days  the  fire  on  the 
deserted  hearth. 

"  At  home  there  was  only  patient  waiting,  earnest  praying,  faith 
in  God,  and  life's  daily  duty.  Joy  had  gone !  hope,  alone,  whis- 
pered of  safety  and  of  a  future  reunion  with  the  absent  one.  Those 
who  sent  father,  husband,  son,  or  brother,  at  that  call  of  danger 
which  came  from  the  heart  of  the  nation,  will  know  forever  what 
patriotism  is,  and  what  an  all-devouring  passion  it  becomes  when 
such  a  sacrifice  is  required  and  made,  and  they  will  know,  too, 
how  hearts  can  bleed  and  love. 

"  The  effect  of  this  great  strain  upon  my  father's  health  was 
alarming.  He  never,  for  a  moment,  faltered  in  the  firmness  with 
which  he  gave  his  son,  as  his  own  right  hand,  to  his  country. 
How  could  so  true  a  patriot  falter !  But  his  suffering  overpow- 
ered his  nervous  system,  so  that,  at  one  time,  we  dreaded  a  para- 
lyzing overthrow.  The  next  morning,  after  the  departure  of  the 
'  Allen  Guard,'  he  could  read  at  family  worship  only  in  a  husky 
whisper.  Within  a  few  days  afterwards  he  was  summoned  to 
Boston  on  business,  and  went  as  a  necessity,  returning  as  soon  as 
possible  to  Pittsfleld.  He  was  there,  witnessing  and  sharing  in 
the  excitement  and  confusion  of  those  first  dreadful  claj^s  of  re- 
bellion, and  said  he  felt  in  danger  of  losing  his  reason.  There,  so 
changed  and  enfeebled  was  he  in  appearance,  that  his  eldest  son 
felt  the  parental  claims  upon  him  to  be  irresistible,  and  resolved, 
as  soon  as  practicable,  to  change  his  business  arrangements  in 
the  city  of  Lawrence,  where  he  was  residing,  and  take  up  his 
abode  with  his  father  in  Pittsfleld.  That  father's  voice  sunk  into 
a  feeble  whisper,  instead  of  the  full  rich  tones  so  peculiar  to  him ; 
and  in  three  weeks  he  lost,  without  being  ill,  twenty-five  pounds 


380  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  JV.   BRIGGS. 

in  weight.  I  never  saw  such  ravages  made  by  purely  mental  dis- 
tress. However,  there  came  to  him  at  length  a  stimulus,  in  the 
daily  excitement  of  the  news,  and  the  best  of  tonics  in  letters  from 
his  son.  So  wonderfully  are  we  organized  to  suffer,  when  we 
must,  that  time,  while  it  does  not  remove  or  efface  the  grief  of 
stricken  ones,  yet  brings  solace,  and  teaches  us  day  by  day  how 
constantly  and  calmly  we  can  endure  an  abiding  sorrow.  Accus- 
tomed to  the  cloud  into  which  we  enter,  as  into  a  great  darkness, 
we  learn  to  walk  not  seeing  whither  our  steps  are  led.  The  tramp 
of  armed  hosts  shakes  the  ground,  and  we  sleep  peacefully.  Va- 
cant places  confront  us  everywhere,  and  yet  we  smile.  God  has 
made  us  so  that  we  cannot  be  miserable,  unless  we  forsake  Him 
and  wander  as  orphans  in  His  world." 


CHAPTER    XXXI. 

LETTER  FROM  HIS  SON  ON  BOARD  THE  CONSTITUTION  — HIS  REPLY  — LETTER 
TO  HIS  DAUGHTER  — ANECDOTE  OF  CROMWELL'S  AMBASSADOR  — HIS 
DAUGHTER'S  MEMORIALS  — LETTERS  TO  HIS  SON— MORE  REMINISCENCES 
LETTERS  TO  HIS  DAUGHTER — HIS  THOUGHTS  AT  HIS  SON'S  DEPARTURE  — 
LETTERS  —  "WILLIAMS  COLLEGE  COMMENCEMENT  —  HIS  LAST  LETTER  —  THE 
END  APPROACHING  —  A  SPEECH  TO  THE  "  ALLEN  GUARD"  —  ADDRESS  OF 
WELCOME  TO  HON.  JOSEPH  HOLT  —  INTERESTLNG  COINCIDED* CE  —  TRIBUTE 
OF  A  FRIEND. 

F  the  letters  from  his  son  in  the  service  of  his 
country,  which  proved  such  happy  tonics  to  the  de- 
pressed and  sinking  spirits  of  Governor  Briggs,  the 
*~q~?  following  is  an  example.  It  possesses  a  special  in- 
eT  terest,  moreover,  as  coming  from  on  board  the  gal- 
lant ship  whose  name  is  linked  with  the  earlier  naval  gloiy 
of  the  Republic.  It  is  addressed  not  to  his  father  but  to 
his  wife :  — 

U.  S.  Frigate  "  Constitution, "  April  22,  1861. 
Dearest  Molly  : 

You  will  doubtless  be  greatly  surprised  to  have  me  hail  from  the 
glorious  old  ship  so  famous  in  our  history.  My  last  to  you  was  a 
hasty  note  from  Philadelphia,  on  the  eve  of  our  departure  from 
that  city. 

On  our  journey  to  Havre  de  Grace,  where  there  is  a  ferry  rail- 
road across  the  Susquehanna,  Captain  Devereaux's  company  and 
mine  were  selected  for  what  proved  to  be  exciting  business.  It 
was  known  before  we  left,  that  the  rebels  had  laid  a  plan  to  seize 
the  ferry  which  we  must  cross ;  in  which  event  the  two  companies 
were  ordered  to  retake  it,  the  rest  of  the  regiment  being  able  only 
to  act  in  support,  by  reason  of  the  narrow  approach  to  the  boat. 

381 


382  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

Now,  for  the  first  time,  the  two  companies  loaded  with  ball  car- 
tridges under  the  inspection  of  the  Brigade  Major.  You  may  well 
imagine  that  all  hands  were  not  so  steady  as  usual,  and  that  some 
of  the  men,  who  at  home  are  quite  familiar  with  the  use  of  fire- 
arms, exhibited,  under  the  observation  of  the  staff  officer,  unusual 
awkwardness. 

But  the  Pittsfield  boys  behaved  nobly,  and  not  one  of  them 
flinched.  We  had  a  pretty  fair  test  of  our  pluck  in  the  opportunity 
of  coolly  contemplating  for  two  hours  all  the  dangers  of  a  charge 
with  the  bayonet.  There  were  some  watery  eyes  as  the  chances 
were  calculated  and  contingencies  provided  for ;  but  there  never 
was  a  more  enthusiastic  response  than  was  made  in  the  shout  of 
assent  which  the  men  gave  me,  when,  after  stating  to  them  fully 
the  nature  and  danger  of  the  undertaking,  I  asked  them  if  they 
were  ready  to  stand  by  and  follow  me. 

One  incident  I  must  detail.  Before  reaching  the  place,  I  told 
the  men  I  proposed  to  lead  them  with  bayonet  in  hand,  as  did 
Lieutenant  Richardson ;  and  that  it  would  be  necessary  for  us  to 
take  two  of  the  muskets  from  the  privates,  of  course  relieving  the 
men  thus  disarmed  from  participation  in  the  enterprise.  I  asked 
some  one  to  lend  me  a  gun.  Not  one  was  offered.  I  turned  to  a 
fair-faced  boy  of  nineteen,  — whom  we  have  often  seen  about  C.'s 
carriage  establishment,  —  and  told  him  I  would  take  his  musket,  as 
it  was  left  for  me  to  make  a  choice. 

He  withdrew  his  gun  as  I  reached  forth  my  hand  for  it,  and  im- 
mediately burst  into  tears ;  clinging  to  it  with  the  devotion  of  a 
veteran,  and  pleading  with  me  not  to  deprive  him  of  a  part  in  the 
dangerous  service.  His  conduct  was  as  noble  and  heroic  as  though 
the  enterprise  had  been  carried  into  execution,  and  we  had  met 
the  fate  of  a  forlorn  hope.     His  name  is  Richard  Powers. 

We  were  agreeably  disappointed  in  being  suffered  to  take  peace- 
able possession  of  the  steamer;  the  outlaws  having  retreated, 
after  occupying  the  locality  the  same  morning,  and  burning  the 
dwelling-house  of  the  president,  or  superintendent,  of  the  rail- 
road company. 

The  whole  regiment,  to  the  number  of  something  more  than 
seven   hundred  men,  embarked  immediately,  and  instead  of  pro- 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  SON  ON  BOARD   CONSTITUTION.    383 

ceeding  to  Baltimore  by  rail,  steamed  directly  for  Annapolis,  the 
capital  of  Maryland,  and  the  site  of  the  Naval  Acadenry,  where 
the  ship  in  which  we  now  are  was  moored,  and  threatened  with 
capture  by  the  rebel  authorities. 

We  arrived  before  daylight,  and  twice  the  troops  were  called  to 
arms  by  apprehensions  of  an  attack.  At  an  early  hour  yesterdajr 
(Sunday)  morning  we  got  alongside  and  made  fast  to  the  old  ship, 
with  the  purpose  of  towing  her  over  the  bar  and  out  of  the  bay 
(the  Chesapeake)  towards  her  destination,  which  was  New  York. 
But  both  vessels  got  aground,  and  we  are  yet  within  full  view  of 
Annapolis  and  the  wharf  we  left  about  noon  yesterday. 

Last  night,  fifty  of  my  company  were  ordered  on  board  the  ship 
with  Captain  Devereaux's  men.  I  learn  the  intention  is  to  keep  us 
on  board  until  she  is  towed  to  New  York,  for  her  protection  from 
the  enemy.  Had  we  reached  her  six  hours  later,  the  dear  old  ship 
would  have  been  in  the  hands  of  the  rebels,  as  yesterday  was  the 
day  they  had  fixed  upon  for  seizing  her,  and  a  body  of  six  hundred 
of  the  secession  force  is  just  behind  the  hills  on  the  shore,  intend- 
ing to  take  the  ship.  Indeed  they  desired  to  attack  us  and  attempt 
to  take  her  yesterday,  but  were  dissuaded.  This  morning  a  tug 
from  New  York  has  arrived  to  take  her  on.  The  "Boston,"  a 
steamer  from  Philadelphia,  has  also  just  passed  us  with  the  Seventh 
Begiment  on  board,  bound  for  Washington,  via  the  Potomac.  The 
Seventh  left  Philadelphia  about  the  time  we  did. 

I  have  been  well,  though  the  fatigue  has  been  very  great  —  hav- 
ing so  constantly  to  be  on  the  alert,  and  in  such  close  quarters  on 

the  Havre  de  Grace  ferry-boat I  need  not  tell  y  -  i 

how  much  I  thought  yesterday  of  the  quiet  home  aud  the  clear  ones 
there,  and  how  little  I  could  realize  the  object  of  our  expedition, 
or  that  the  day  was  Sunday.     I  cannot  write  more  now.     Love  to 

all. 

Affectionately  yours, 

H.  S.  Briggs. 

After  the  receipt  of  this  letter  at  the  homestead,  Gov- 
ernor Briggs  wrote  to  his  son  as  follows  :  — 


384  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

Pittsfield,  April  21th,  1861. 
My  dear  Sox  : 

I  have  nothing  special  to  communicate.  I  only  write  to  say  that 
by  the  blessing  of  God,  we  are  all  in  health,  at  both  houses.  Lone- 
some and  anxious,  we  are,  of  course.  In  this  respect  we  are  situ- 
ated like  many  of  our  neighbors  and  great  multitudes  of  our 
county  men.  Ferry •  came  on  Saturday  night.  He  says  he  had 
the  account  of  the  occurrences  in  Baltimore  when  the  Sixth  Resfi- 
ment  of  Massachusetts  troops  passed  through.  On  the  part  of 
the  sixty  men  who  marched  two  miles,  opposed  by  a  mob  of  four 
thousand,  there  was  a  manifestation  of  cool  bravery,  which  was 
very  uncommon.  A  man  told  him,  that  after  that  company  entered 
the  cars,  and  were  moving  off,  one  of  the  rioters  said,  "  It  is  no 
use  to  try  to  do  anything."  "  Why?  "  asked  another.  "  Because," 
said  he,  with  an  oath,  and  pointing  to  the  cars  moving  off,  "Be- 
cause there  goes  Bunker  Hill." 

We  should  be  glad  to  see  you,  but  if  you  cannot  leave  so  that  all 
will  go  on  well,  don't  come. 

In  this  time  of  gloom,  may  we  trust  in  God. 

Affectionately  }rour  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

Forwarding  the  letter  from  Captain  Briggs  just  quoted, 
to  his  daughter  at  Lawrence,  he  writes  :  — 

Pittsfield,  April  25,  1861. 
My  dear  Daughter  « 

Inclosed  I  send  yon  a  letter  from  dear  Henry.  Its  details  show 
that  he  has  true  courage,  and  that  his  men  are  of  real  metal.  The 
story  of  the  young  man  is  very  touching.  I  read  it  to  Mr.  C.  His 
lips  quivered  and  his  eyes  filled  with  tears.  What  times  !  If  God 
did  not  rule  the  world,  I  should  despair  and  die  ;  but  I  hope  to  ac- 
quiesce in  His  good  and  right  government.  If  He  designs  to 
humble  us  by  sad  reverses,  He  will  do  it ;  if  not,  we  shall  be  sus- 
tained.   In  my  sadness  the  other  night,  I  opened  a  letter  and  found 

i  Then  a  member  of  Congress  from  Connecticut;  since  Brig.-General  of  Volun- 
teers, and  now  U.  S.  Senator. 


ANECDOTE   OF  CROMWELL'S  AMBASSADOR.  385 

a  tract,  which  detailed  a  conversation  between  Cromwell's  Ambas- 
sador to  Sweden,  and  his  servant.  In  a  storm  he  was  waiting  to 
start  on  his  mission,  and  was  sad  over  the  condition  of  his  country, 
and  could  not  sleep.  His  servant  said,  "  Please  sir,  may  I  ask  you 
a  question  ?  "  "  Certainly,"  said  he.  "  Then,  sir,  don't  you  think  God 
governed  the  world  very  well  before  you  came  into  it?"  "Cer- 
tainly," said  he.  "  Please,  sir,  don't  you  think  he  will  govern  it  as 
well  after  you  have  left  it?"  "Certainly."  "  Then,  sir,  won't  it 
be  as  well  for  you  to  be  content,  and  let  Him  govern  it  while  you 
are  in  it?  "  The  ambassador  made  no  reply,  but  turned  over  and 
slept  till  he  was  called  to  go.  How  just  and  beautiful  the  rebuke  ! 
May  I  take  it  and  profit  by  it.  We  look  for  George  and  Whitey 1 
to-morrow.  Love  to  Charles.  Come  as  soon  as  you  can.  All 
well  as  usual,  except  your  mother.     God  bless  you  both. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  reminiscences  of  Mrs.  Bigelow,  again  help  the  biog- 
rapher in  his  pleasing  task  :  — 

"  The  last  time  my  father  was  in  Boston,  he  went  to  the  Tract 
Society's2  rooms,  as  he  always  liked  to  do  when  in  the  city,  and 
went  into  the  private  room  of  the  Secretary  to  tell  him  how  valu- 
able the  little  tract3  of  two  pages  had  been  to  him;  and  at  the 
same  time  he  had  with  this  friend  a  delightful  talk  of  a  few  minutes 
on  the  presence  of  God  in  human  events,  and  of  the  peace  which 
real  faith  in  Him  inspires."  * 

Inspirited  by  his  son's  letter,  he  seeks,  with  noble  words, 
to  inspirit  him  in  return  :  — 

Pittsfeeld,  28th  April,  1861. 
My  dear  Sox : 

We  were  glad  to  hear  from  you  yesterday.     Since  you  left,  the 

1  A  favorite  horse  more  than  once  mentioned  in  these  Memoirs,  and  still 
cared  for  by  the  family. 

2  He  was  President  of  the  American  Tract  Society  up  to  the  time  of  his 
death. 

3  The  tract  alluded  to  in  the  foregoing  letter. 

33 


380  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  N.  BEIGGS. 

excitement  here  and  throughout  the  State  lias  been  at  fever  heat. 

p has  generously  'deposited  a  thousand  dollars  lor  another 

company.  The  "  Allen  Guard,"  with  their  commander,  have  been 
much  in  the  minds  of  our  people  and  much  on  their  tongues,  since 
they  left.  You  must  have  had  stirring  times  all  the  while  till  your 
arrival  at  Annapolis. 

I  think,  so  far  as  we  are  informed,  Butler's  course  and  conduct 
do  him  credit,  and  elevate  him  in  public  estimation.  I  believe,  if 
this  contest  continues,  he  will  make  his  mark  so  that  his  name 
will  live.  I  heard  him  make  a  short  speech  at  Springfield,  which 
I  think  was  exactly  the  thing.  I  was  never  more  gratified  with 
anything  of  the  kind. 

Massachusetts  has  early  gained  a  prominence  in  this  war,  which 
is  very  remarkable.  At  once  she  is  placed  high  in  the  estimation 
of  sister  States,  and  I  hope  she  will  continue  to  deserve  the  credit 
she  has  won.  I  still  hope  that  God,  in  His  great  mercy,  will  order 
this  most  unprovoked  rupture  between  the  States  of  this  Republic 
to  be  rightly  adjusted.  But  if  the  wrong-doers  persist  in  their 
madness,  and  the  contest  goes  on,  fully  believing  we  are  on  the 
side  of  good  government,  law,  and  right,  I  trust  He  will  give  suc- 
cess to  the  right  and  rebuke  the  wrong.  I  hope  those  who  will 
have  to  fight,  if  fight  we  must,  will  look  to  God  to  give  strength 
to  their  arms  in  the  hour  of  trial.  What  an  example  the  brave 
and  good  Havelock  is  to  Christian  soldiers !  Allow  me  to  express 
the  hope,  my  son,  that  while  you  do  all  your  duty  as  a  soldier,  you 
will  as  faithfully  do  your  duty  to  the  Captain  of  your  Salvation. 
Nothing  sustains  me  in  my  regret  at  your  absence  but  the  cheering 
belief  that,  while  you  march  under  the  banner  of  your  country,  and 
bravely  support  it,  you  will  never  cease  to  feel  that  the  banne*  of 
your  Saviour  waves  always  over  you,  and  that  His  strong  arm  will 
sustain  you.  God  have  you  and  all  of  us  in  His  holy  keeping,  and 
eive  success  to  what  we  believe  to  be  the  just  cause  of  our  country. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 


& 

Affectionatelv,  vour  father, 

G.  X.  Briggs 


In  o-.-.3  sentence  of  the  next  letter  he  gently  reproaches 
his   sou  for  what  it  is  manifest  from  his  whole  life.  Avas 


LETTERS   TO   HIS  SOX.  387 

something    like    an   inherited   trait  —  that   of    self-depre- 
ciation :  — 

Pittsfield,  May  14,  1861. 
My  dear  Sox  : 

Your  long  and  most  welcome  letter  came  to  hand  yesterday.  It 
broke  up  some  water  fountains,  but  nobody  was  drowned.  "We 
are  getting  on  very  well,  considering  the  absence  of  one  who 
thinks  he  would  be  of  no  consequence  here.  We  should  be  quite 
willing  to  try  to  live  with  him.  I  hope,  my  son,  you  will  hereafter 
forego  remarks  so  under-estimating  yourself,  and  be  willing  to  let 
the  opinions  of  your  friends  have  their  proper  weight  in  the  esti- 
mation of  your  worth.  I  have  little  news  to  write.  The  spring  is 
late,  —  no  planting,  so  far  as  I  know,  in  the  fields,  and  but  little  in 
the  gardens.  Greylock  looks  finely.  The  patriotic  feeling  keeps 
up.  The  "  Allen  Guard  "  is  not  forgotten.  Whittlesy  is  going  on 
to  join  them.  I  hope  there  is  room  for  him.  I  rejoice  greatly  to 
learn  that  your  health  is  so  good,  and  that  the  Father  of  mercies 
has  preserved  the  health  of  your  company.  Above  all,  I  hope  that 
the  morals  of  your  company  will  be  preserved,  and  that  they  will 
show  that  soldiers  in  the  service  of  their  country  can  maintain  the 
character  and  morals  of  good  citizens,  and  thus  do  a  double  service 
to  their  country.  I  feel  the  deepest  interest  in  their  success,  desir- 
ous that  by  soldierly,  manly,  and  upright  conduct,  they  honor  their 
town,  and  show  themselves  to  be  true  sons  of  Massachusetts. 
God  bless  you  all.  His  protecting  care  has  been  signally  over  you 
all.  I  pray  that  it  may  continue  to  be  so.  Show  yourselves  to  be 
men. 

A  day  or  two  later  lie  writes  again ;  and  there  is  a 
gleam  of  his  old  playfulness  in  the  lines  :  — 

Pittsfield,  16th  May,  1861. 
My  dear  Sox : 

Since  you  and  your  company  left  home,  you  have  not  been  per- 
mitted to  halt  long  enough  to  wash  your  face  and  hands.  We  had 
hardly  finished  your  letter  giving  an  account  of  your  improved 
condition  at  Fort  McHenry,  before  we   received  your  telegram 


388  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

announcing  that  you  are  at  Federal  Hill ;  and  this  morning  it  ia 
said  General  Butler  and  the  Massachusetts  troops  are  ordered  to 
Fortress  Monroe.  These,  I  suppose,  are  the  chances  of  war;  and, 
as  cousin  Richard  Briggs  said  when  it  rained  hard  and  he  wanted 

fair  weather :"  There  is  no  use  saying  a  word." 

God  bless  and  preserve  you,  my  son. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

The  grandfather's  heart  keeps  all  the  freshness  that  filled 
the  father's,  twenty  years  before  ;  and  it  wells  out  in  this 
extract  from  another  letter  to  his  son :  — 

t 

"  Little  Harry  went  to  church  this  morning,  and 

slept  through.  After  we  came  out,  he  asked  if  he  had  not  behaved 
wTell?  He  is  a  dear  little  fellow.  Little  Nelly  is  as  healthy  as  a 
doe.  Your  brother  George  procured  a  pcle  more  than  forty  feet 
long  for  a  flag-staff,  and  Georgie  has  painted  it  ready  to  be  raised. 
Mary  has  draped  your  full-length  portrait  with  the  colors.  The 
other  day,  I  whittled  out  a  sword  for  Harry.  He  painted  the  blade 
white  and  the  handle  black,  and  has  placed  it  across  and  under  the 
picture,  and  it  sets  it  off  very  well.  My  best  wishes  to  all  the 
'  Guard.'    God  bless  you.     Much  love  from  your  mother." 

His  daughter's  hand  guides  us  yet  again  along  his  declin- 
ing pathway :  — 

"  As  the  summer  advanced,  he  gradually  regained  his  health  and 
usual  tone  of  spirits,  and  was  actively  interested  and  occupied  in 
passing  events.  Indeed,  he  seemed  in  more  elastic  and  firmer 
health  than  for  many  years.  He  was  vigorous  in  thought,  cheerful 
and  hopeful  for  the  country,  and  his  social,  genial  nature  seemed 
never  to  find  so  many  sweet  expressions  and  ministries.  He  had 
a  pleasant  word  for  everybody ;  his  good  stories  were  never  better 
or  more  ready.  All  of  us  who  knew  him  best  saw  that  he  dwelt  in 
the  light.  Many  passages  in  his  letters  written  during  the  summer 
have  now  a  thrilling  significance.     We  see  now  that  the  exceeding 


LETTERS    TO    HIS  DAUGHTER.  389 

peace  which  flooded  the  evening  of  his  life,  while  tempestuous 
scenes  were  passing  around  him,  was  the  dawning  of  heaven  upon 
him;  so  kindly  was  the  veil  suffered  to  rest  over  the  event  of 
death;  and  yet  so  evidently  was  his  spirit  made  ready  for  the 
approaching  ho  ir  of  its  departure  from  the  body  with  which  it  had 
dwelt  more  than  sixty  ^ears.  How  often  after  the  departure  of 
the  beloved,  this  heavenly  preparation  becomes  manifest  to  us,  not 
discerning  it  fully  at  the  time. 

"  Sitting  down  one  calm  evening,  he  said  to  my  mother,  '  I  won- 
der when  I  shall  go  home.'  A  few  days  before  he  was  stricken 
down,  he  visited  an  intimate  friend  in  his  office.  He  entered  it  in 
a  playful  mood.  Breathing  quickly  after  mounting  the  stairs,  he 
said,  '  I  am  growing  old,'  and  then  his  countenance  suddenly 
assumed  an  earnest  expression,  and  he  said,  '  but,  brother  Francis, 
I  don't  feel  as  I  used  to  about  growing  old.  Death  has  lost  much 
of  its  gloom,'  and  proceeded  to  discourse  of  dying,  and  the  realities 
and  occupations  of  another  life." 

Under  date  of  June  25,  1861,  he  writes  :  — 

"How  fast  we  are  all  hastening  to  the  other  world!  What 
manner  of  persons  ought  we  to  be !  " 

The  incidents  of  the  war  were  now  the  most  engrossing 
of  earthly  things  to  his  mind.     He  writes  again  :  — 

Pittsfield,  18th  July,  1861. 
My  dear  Daughter: 

On  Monday  morning,  all  of  both  families  accompanied  Henry  to 
Springfield,  with  the  intention  of  seeing  him  and  his  regiment 
off.  Previous  to  their  going,  there  was  a  very  interesting  cere- 
mony of  presenting  the  state  and  national  colors  to  the  regiment, 
by  the  ladies  of  Springfield. 

I  was  impressed  with  the  power  of  Henry's  voice  when  giving 

orders  to  the  regiment.     It  was  clear,  distinct,  and  penetrating, 

and  distinctly  heard  at  a  great  distance.     I  suppose  I  was  not  an 

impartial  judge  of  his  appearance.     His  labors  are  very  severe; 

33* 


390  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

and  if  the  cause  he  is  engaged  in  was  not  the  most  just  and  sacred 
that  man  can  be  engaged  in,  I  could  not  be  reconciled  to  the  labor 
and  fatigue  and  anxiety  it  costs  him,  to  say  nothing  of  the  solici- 
tude of  his  friends.    God  bless  and  preserve  him.     I  know  He  does 

all  things  well. 

Your  affectionate  father, 

Geo.  N.  Briggs. 

A  little  later  he  writes  again,  the  influence  of  things  to 
come  —  beyond  the  narrow  sea  —  prevailing  now  over  the 
disturbing  influences  of  earth.  How  manifestly,  although 
unconsciously,  he  is  ripening  for  heaven  and  its  felicities : 

"  We  shall  very  soon,  in  the  course  of  nature,  be  where  the  anxi- 
eties, solicitudes,  and  glooms  of  this  life  will  not  disturb  us.  If, 
then,  we  shall  be  so  happy  as  to  be  in  that  joyous  world,  where  no 
one  will  say  '  I  am  sick,'  and  all  tears  will  be  wiped  away  from  the 
eyes  of  its  peaceful  inhabitants,  where  He  who  groaned  on  Calvary 
will  be  the  delight  and  admiration  of  blissful  nryriads,  no  matter 
what  may  be  our  transient  uneasiness  here. 

"  I  hope  you  and  Charles  will  be  able  to  see  Henry  before  he 
leaves.     With  kindest  love  for  Charles, 

"  Affectionately,  your  father, 

"  G.  N.  Briggs." 

Father  and  son  never  meet  again  :  — 


o* 


"The  vision  of  the  beloved  face,"  writes  Colonel  Briggs,  "up- 
turned to  heaven,  peaceful  and  fair  as  a  child's,  while  he  stood  on 
the  wharf  in  Boston,  was  my  last,  until  the  silence  and  sacredness 
of  death  rested  upon  him." 

"At  that  last  interview,"  says  the  daughter,  "  each  was  similarly 
impressed  with  the  appearance  of  the  other,  and  both  seemed  to 
have  discerned  a  peculiar  glow  of  { the  inner  countenance  of  the 
soul,'  —  a  glimpse,  perhaps,  of  what  we  shall  be  when  '  this  mortal 
shall  have  put  on  immortality.'  In  speaking  of  the  departure  of  his 
son,  standing  under  the  evening  sky,  his  head  uncovered,  on  the 
wheel-house  of  the  steamer,  which  was  veiled  in  clouds  of  cannon- 


1VILLIAMS  COLLEGE  COMMENCEMENT.  391 

smoke,  rolling  up  to  blend  with  sunset  clouds,  he  said,  '  H.  looked 
angelic  with  the  serene  smile  that  lighted  up  his  face.'  Shall  they 
not  meet  again  ? 

"  '  Oh,  the  rest  forever  and  the  rapture ! 

Oh,  the  hand  that  wipes  the  tears  away  I 
Oh,  the  golden  homes  beyond  the  sunset, 

And  the  hope  that  watches  o'er  the  clay  1 '  " 

Under  date  of  August  14th,  he  writes  to  his  son  at  Camp 
Brightwood,  just  out  of  Washington  :  — 

"  This  morning  we  hear  of  the  great  battle  in  Missouri  and  the 
death  of  General  Lyon.      The  disproportion  of  forces  was    very 

great We  are  glad  to  hear  you  are  better,  and  well 

established  in  your  new  camp.  I  hope  the  sickness  among  your 
men  is  diminished.  Saw  the  Governor  and  staff  at  Commence- 
ment,1 but  did  not  talk  with  them.  Colonel  L.  spoke  of  you  in  the 
kindest  terms ;  said  that  you  had  the  reputation  of  standing  up  for 
the  rights  of  your  men.  Do  your  duty  faithfully  as  an  officer.  lie 
kind  and  true  to  your  men.  Trust  in  God.  Daily  bear  the  yoke  of 
the  Saviour.  Live  near  Him  and  all  will  be  well.  The  Saviour 
has  said  '  My  yoke  is  easy  and  my  burden  is  light,'  and  lie  will 
give  rest  to  those  who  come  unto  Him.  This  is  as  true  in  the 
camp  as  it  is  in  civil  life.  Make  my  kind  regards  to  Mr.  Blair, 
and  my  respects  to  your  officers. 

"Affectionately,  your  father, 

"  G.  X.  Briggs." 

A  letter  from  one  who  met  him  on  that  Commencement 
occasion,  brings  him  back  to  memory  with  welcome  truth- 
fulness :  — 

"  The  vivid  remembrance  of  our  delightful  Christian  intercourse 
at  Williarastown,  a  little  more  than  a  month  ago,  comes  up  in  con 

1  In  his  remarks  at  the  dinner  of  the  Alumni,  he  was  conciliatory  in  his  tone, 
and  inculcated  kind  feeling  towards  our  enemies,  "  though,"  said  he,  "  my  right 
arm  is  given  to  fight,  if  light  we  must." 


392  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIGGS. 

templating  his  departure,  —  so  kind,  so  gentle,  so  loving,  was  all  he 
said  and  did.  It  was  mainly  owing  to  his  benevolent  efforts  in 
the  Board  of  Trustees,  that  the  delinquencies  of  a  student  were 
overlooked,  and  a  degree  given  to  him.  '  We  must  not  sacrifice 
the  young  man,'  he  said,  '  perhaps,  by  kindness,  we  can  win  him 
into  the  right  path.'  " 

The  last  letter  he  wrote  was  addressed  to  his  son  in  the 
army.  For  all  who  loved  him  it  possesses  a  deep  and 
almost  sacred  interest.     It  is  dated,  — 

PlTTSFIELD,  Aug.  20,  1861. 

My  dear  Son  : 

We  are  glad  to  hear  that  the  health  of  your  men  is  improving, 
and  that  j^ou  are  well.  "We  are  well.  While  this  intelligence  can 
be  mutually  communicated,  how  grateful  should  we  be  to  that 
blessed  Providence  who  has  been  so  merciful  and  good  to  us  as  a 
family.  I  saw  a  letter  to-day  from  young  Hemmingway,1  of  the 
Pollock  Guard.  It  was  a  well-written  letter,  in  which  he  said 
some  agreeable  things  of  their  Colonel A  strict  disci- 
pline, with  kindness,  and  a  proper  regard  for  the  welfare  of  the 
men,  will  secure  respect  and  love.  I  rejoice  to  see  the  rigid  and 
excellent  rules  which  McClellan  has  proclaimed  for  his  army.  The 
observance  of  temperance  in  his  camp,  which,  it  is  said,  Butler  has 
enforced  among  his  soldiers,  and  prescribed  for  himself  and  offi- 
cers, cannot  but  be  useful  and  honorable.  It  is  a  fact  too  well 
proved  to  be  denied,  that  intoxicating  liquors  are  not  useful  to 
men  in  health,  and  should  be  used  as  medicine  with  great  caution 
and  wisdom.  But  I  will  not  give  a  lecture  on  temperance,  as  I 
have  promised  Sayles  to  go  to  South  Adams  and  give  one  on 
Thursday  night. 

Your  mother  sends  "  a  dear  mother's  love,"  and  jtou  know  what 
that  is. 

I  have  taxed  you  with  a  long  letter,  when  you  have  so  little 

1  Sergeant  Haskell  Hemmingway,  of  the  10th  Regiment,  a  noble  and  youthful 
soldier,  who  fell  bravely  fighting  at  Malvern  Hill,  and  one  of  three  sons  from  a 
neighbor's  family  who  were  victims  of  the  war. 


A   SPEECH  TO    THE  "ALLEN  GUARD"  393 

time  to  read  one.  Bemember,  it  is  from  a  father  who  in  the  course 
of  nature  will  not  tax  you  to  read  his  letters  a  great  while  longer. 
Never  forget  or  neglect,  my  son,  the  best  friend  you  have  in  the  uni- 
verse, who  will  never  forsake  you,  if  you  do  not  forsake  Him.  I  think 
every  day  of  my  fleeting  life  I  more  and  more  love  "Him  who  is  alto- 
gether lovely,  and  chiefest  among  ten  thousand."  Ihope  one  day  to  be 
with  Him,  and  to  see  Him  as  He  is.1 

With  kind  regards  to  all  your  officers  who  think  my  regards 
worth  having.     God  bless  you. 

Affectionately,  your  father, 

G.  N.  Briggs. 

P.  S.  Yesterday  little  Harry,  gun  in  hand,  went  through  the 
manual  exercise  for  Grandmamma  Bulkley's  benefit.  For  shoul- 
der arms,  he  very  emphatically  said,  "soldier"  arms. 

During  the  last  six  weeks  of  his  life,  he  was  much  more 
cheerful  than  he  had  been  for  months.  He  made  several 
addresses,  short  public  speeches,  which  are  vividly  remem- 
bered by  all  who  listened  to  them.  A  nephew  wrote  to  him, 
during  the  political  campaign  preceding  the  fall  election, 
urging  him  to  make  a  speech  in  New  York.  He  wrote  in 
reply,  — 

'•  My  dear  boy,  I  have  put  off  my  political  harness,  and  cannot 
put  it  on  again.  After  such  a  speaker  as  Lincoln,  I  should  fail,  and 
that  would  mortify  you." 

In  the  month  of  August,  after  the  return  of  the  Allen 
Guard  to  Pittsfield,  at  the  close  of  their  three  months'  ser- 
vice, the  company  attended  religious  service  at  the  Baptist 
church,  on  which  occasion  Governor  Briggs  addressed  them 
in  his  most  eloquent  and  feeling  and  impassioned  manner. 
One  who  heard  him,  says  of  the  address,  — 

l  These  italicized  words  are  engraved  upon  a  marble  scroll  drooping  over lna 
tomb. 


304  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BRIG  OS. 

"  He  spoke  to  them  of  patriotism,  declaring  it  to  comprehend 
love  of  home  and  love  of  country,  respect  and  obedience  to  law, 
and  the  fulfilment,  with  a  loyal  and  true  heart,  of  all  the  duties 
of  the  citizen  to  the  Government  and  to  the  country.  The  op- 
posite of  patriotism,  is  spoken  in  one  word — treason!  aud  the 
opposite  of  the  patriot  is  the  traitor." 

These  latter  words  were  pronounced  with  a  most  impres- 
sive emphasis  and  solemnity.  He  then  applied  the  princi- 
ple of  patriotism  to  religious  obligation  to  the  benign  and 
exalted  government  of  God,  and  exhibited  the  sin  of  man 
in  his  rebellion  against  such  a  government  and  such  a  God. 
He  closed  with  an  affecting  and  earnest  appeal  to  every  one 
to  make  the  Saviour  his  friend,  and  to  seek  him  with  all 
the  heart,  and  without  delay. 

Among  the  latest  public  utterances  of  his  eloquent  lips, 
was  a  brief  address  of  welcome  to  the  Hon.  Joseph  Holt, 
who  made  a  brief  stay  in  the  village,  arid  to  whom  the  citi- 
zens gave  a  cordial  reception.  Not  long  afterwards,  the 
names  of  these  distinguished  gentlemen  were  associated 
together  in  the  public  prints,  as  umpires  in  the  question 
which  had  arisen  between  our  Government  and  that  of  New 
Grenada.  The  anticipation  of  service  on  this  important 
commission,  stirred  in  his  heart  not  a  few  of  the  old  and 
apparently  extinct  pulsations  of  interest,  and  he  spoke 
with  a  keen  zest  of  the  pleasure  with  which  he  should 
mingle,  yet  again,  with  public  men  and  things. 

It  is  not  a  little  remarkable  that  upon  the  very  day  on 
which  the  newspapers  thus  revoked  him  to  public  life,  a 
fiat,  more  resistless  than  that  of  a  mighty  human  govern- 
ment, interdicted  him  from  obedience  to  that  call,  and  bade 
him  leave  forever  the  busy  theatre  and  the  shifting  scenes 
of  earthly  life. 


TRIBUTE  OF  A   FRIEXD.  395 

As  the  veil  is  now  to  drop  over  the  activities  and  achieve- 
ments and  honors,  which  so  broadly  and  shiningly  marked 
his  career,  the  biographer  is  glad  to  give  place  to  one  whose 
intimacy  with  him  entitles  him  to  the  privilege  of  letting  it 
fall,  with  few  but  fitly  chosen  words  of  retrospect  and  com- 
memoration :  — 

"It  is  now,  I  suppose,  considerably  more  than  thirty  years  since 
I  became  acquainted  with  him,  and  every  year  has  added  to  the 
strength  of  my  early  conviction  of  his  various  and  distinguished 
excellences.  Nature  endowed  him  with  the  finest  powers  of  mind. 
But  to  me  his  great  mental  endowments  were  less  attractive  than 
his  geniality,  kindness,  and  the  frank  and  open  imposes  of  his 
nature,  lie  was  strictly  and  ever  a  man  of  probity  and  truth.  Long 
in  public  life,  a  part  of  the  time  mixed  up  with  bitter  political  con- 
tests,—  how  few  men  pass  through  that  ordeal,  and  preserve  the 
original  purity  of  their  character !  Over  him  the  temptations  of 
political  life  and  public  station  seemed  to  exercise  no  unfavorable 
influence  whatever. 

"  His  heart  and  reputation  were  as  pure  and  unspotted  the  clay 
he  left  as  when  he  first  entered  office.  His  course  was  always 
firm,  open,  and  manly.  He  denounced  fraud  and  corruption  in 
high  and  low  places  with  unsparing  energy.  Many  have  felt  the 
sting  of  his  eloquence,  and  yet  I  never  heard,  and  do  not  believe. 
that  either  as  a  politician,  legislator,  Governor,  or  Judge,  it  ever 
occurred  to  any  one  to  question  his  integrity  or  the  purity  of  his 
motives.  For  many  years  I  have  been  in  the  habit  of  speaking  of 
him,  and  thinking  of  him  as  one  of  the  most  perfect  characters 
that  I  have  ever  known,  and  one  of  the  safest  models  for  young 
men  just  entering  life,  to  imitate.  Weakness  and  failings  he  may 
have  had,  for  that  is  the  lot  of  humanity,  but  these,  if  they  existed, 
it  never  fell  to  my  lot  to  discover.  It  seems  but  a  short  time  since 
I  first  met  him.  At  that  time  he  was  overflowing  with  life  and 
spirit,  not  folly  conscious  of  his  strength,  but  yet  indulging  in 
hopes  of  future  eminence  and  usefulness.  These  hopes  I  have 
seen  fully  realized. 


396  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE  X.   BRIGGS. 

"  He  attained  to  distinctions  and  honors,  surpassing  the  dream  of 
his  youth,  and  yet  he  looked  upon  all  these  things  as  vanities,  and 
poor  and  worthless  illusions  in  comparison  with  a  conscience  void 
of  offence  towards  God  and  man,  —  a  lesson  which  the  world  has 
been  learning  and  forgetting  from  the  beginning." 


CHAPTER    XXXIir 

A  MORNING  OF  HOPE  —  WORSHIP  —  WALK  TO  THE  VILLAGE — EXHILARA- 
TION OF  FEELING  — A  PURPOSED  ACT  OF  KINDNESS  — ITS  MELANCHOLY 
ISSUE  —  HIS  DEATH-STROKE  —  SURGICAL  AID  —  HIS  SUFFERINGS  —  SCENES 
AND  INCIDENTS— A  DREADFUL  NIGHT  — HOPE  AND  NO  HOPE  — THE  VALUE 
OF  HOPE  — ARRIVAL  OF  HIS  DAUGHTER  — HIS  FAITHFUL  NURSE  —  HIS 
DAUGHTER'S  MEMORIALS  OF  HIS  LAST  DAYS  — HEAVENLY-MINDEDNESS  — 
PATIENCE  —  PREPARATION  —  HIS   DEATH. 

'N  the  morning  of  the  fourth  of  September  he  awoke 
from  the  last  night  of  healthful,  refreshing  slumber 
vouchsafed  to  him  in  life.  He  was  daily  gaining  in 
health  and  spirits,  and  took  so  lively  an  interest  in 
passing  events,  that  the  newspapers  engaged  his 
attention  as  soon  as  morning  worship  was  over.  On  this 
memorable  morning  he  read,  at  family  prayer,  the  eight}^- 
fourth  psalm,  "  How  amiable  are  thy  tabernacles,  O  Lord 
of  hosts."  Those  who  enjoyed  that  occasion  of  worship 
are  thrilled  to  this  hour  with  their  speedy,  subsequent,  and 
profound  realization  of  the  significance  to  him  of  the  beau- 
tiful promises  in  that  sacred  lyric,  —  "  Blessed  is  the  man 
whose  strength  is  in  thee.  They  go  from  strength  to 
strength.  Every  one  of  them  in  Zion  appeareth  before 
God." 

Almost  his  next  reading  was  the  announcement,  alluded 
to  in  the  previous  chapter,  of  his  recall  to  public  duty. 
His  son's  filial  devotion  treasured  up  the  events  of  that 
morning,  as  if  by  some  presentiment  of  the  extraordinary 
interest  with  which,  before  night,  they  would  be  invested. 

34  397 


398  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BR1GGS. 

His  last  service  at  his  library  table  was  one  of  kindness, 
in  -writing  a  letter  of  introduction  for  a  young  man.  His 
usual  walk  to  the  village  —  from  the  business  centre  of 
which  his  dwelling  was  distant  something  over  half  a  mile 
—  had  this  distinction  from  all  others,  that  it  was  his  last ! 
He  visited  a  familiar  haunt,  —  the  insurance  office,  —  and 
was  so  genial  in  his  manner  and  so  cheerful  in  his  tones, 
that,  after  he  left  the  office,  a  friend  remarked,  "  There  is 
the  old  ring  in  the  Governor's  voice  to-day." 

It  is  remembered  of  this  last  visit  to  the  village,  that  he 
was  more  than  usually  playful,  and  told  several  stories  on 
the  street  with  much  zest.  "  He  came  home."  says  his 
son,  "  on  that  pleasant  sunny  day,  without  a  single  sigh 
for  the  world  to  which  he  would  return  no  more." 

This  almost  exhilaration  of  feeling  continued,  and  was 
displayed  at  the  dinner-table,  where,  with  much  vivacity, 
he  rallied  a  guest.  After  dinner  he  prepared  to  complete 
his  kind  attentions  to  some  ladies  —  who,  by  the  breaking 
down  of  their  carriage  in  front  of  his  house,  had  been 
thrown  upon  his  hospitality  —  by  carrying  them  to  their 
home.  For  this  purpose,  he  had  borrowed  of  his  son  his 
favorite  horse  "  White}^"  and  his  chaise, — now  ready  for 
the  benevolent  expedition. 

In  his  own  room  he  exchanged  some  pleasant  words  with 
Mrs.  Briggs,  and  entered  a  closet  to  take  down  a  light  over- 
coat. While  stretching  out  his  hand  to  do  this,  he  threw 
down  a  loaded  gun  which  had  been  moved  from  its  wonted 
corner,  into  what  was  considered  a  safer  place.  While  he 
was  picking  it  up  from  the  floor,  it  was  in  some  way  dis- 
charged with  most  melancholy  and  fatal  effect. 

His  wife,  who  was  sitting  with  her  work  in  the  room, 
saw  nothing,  and,  for  an  instant,  in  the  blinding,  suffocat- 


MELANCHOLY  EVENT.  399 

ing  smoke  and   stunning  explosion,  thought  herself  hurt. 
His  voice  aroused  her,  — 

"  It  has  burned  my  face,  Harriet,"  he  said  ;  and,  turning 
instantly,  she  saw  him  lift  his  hand  to  his  cheek,  and,  as 
he  did  so,  he  added,  "It  is  all  gone." 

The  noise  brought  his  son  into  the  room  just  in  time  to 
aid  him  to  reach  his  bed.  Cordials  were  immediately  ad- 
ministered, and  efforts  were  made  to  staunch  the  flow  of 
blood  from  the  dreadful  wounds.  While  this  was  doing 
he  said,  faintly,  to  his  son,  — 

"  You  placed  the  gun  in  the  wrong  place  ;  "  and,  after  a 
moment's  pause,  he  added,  "  I  shall  soon  die  ;  but  it  is  all 
right.     Now,  my  dear  son,  pray  with  me." 

As  his  son  knelt  to  comply  with  this  request,  the  father 
took  both  his  trembling  hands  in  his  own,  and  during  all 
the  heart-broken  supplication  his  face  wore  an  expression, 
no  longer  of  agony,  or  even  of  unrest,  but  rather  of  perfect 
peace  and  of  the  most  serene  devotion. 

When  the  prayer  ceased,  he  said,  again,  "  I  shall  die  ;" 
and,  looking  up,  added,  "  It  is  strange,  that  in  my  own 
peaceful  home  I  should  meet  the  fate  of  the  battle-field. 
But  it  is  all  right." 

His  son  attempted  to  divert  his  mind  from  this  dreadful 
conviction,  by  calling  his  attention  to  the  torn  brim  of  his 
hat,  and  to  the  large  number  of  shot  that  had  entered  the 
ceiling,  indicating  that  he  had  escaped  quite  a  large  part 
of  the  fatal  charge. 

As  the  physicians,  who  were  instantly  summoned,  gath- 
ered about  his  bed,  he  noticed  them,  and  said,  "  Dr.  Cole 
is  our  family  physician.  Dr.  Childs,  and  all  of  you,  are  my 
friends.  God  bless  3-011.  What  do  you  think?  I  wish  I 
could  clear  my  throat  a  little. 


>» 


400  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  X.    BRIGGS. 

"  Those,"  says  his  daughter.  '•'  who  were  with  the  sufferer  duriDg 
the  dreadful  hours  which  followed  cannot  dwell  upon  the  agony 
borne  so  patiently  and  quietly.  His  own  blessed  spirit  seemed  to 
inspire  those  ministering  to  him  with  strength  and  calmness, 
equalled  only  by  their  tenderness  and  pity.  The  hour  of  his  keen 
suffering  under  the  hands  of  the  surgeons  being  passed,  he  called 
for  a  slate,  and  wrote,  'Ma,  it  has  come!  "Be  still,  and  know 
that  I  am  God."  '  Then,  drawing  his  son's  ear  close  to  his  lips,  he 
whispered,  '  One  hundred  dollars  to  little  Harry  from  his  birth ; ' 
and  this  was  all  the  arrangement  he  suggested,  so  completely  was 
'  his  house  set  in  order.'  " 

Mr.  D.,  one  of  his  kindest  friends,  and  for  whom  Gov- 
ernor Briggs  cherished  a  sincere  regard,  was  standing  nigh, 
and  his  son,  pointing  to  him,  said,  — 

"  Father,  you  have  no  better  friend." 

"  Yes,  my  son  ;  there  is  one  better  friend  I  have  ;  "  and 
his  eyes  were  lifted  heavenward  as  he  spoke  feebly.  He 
then  whispered,  "Charles  —  Harriet  —  Henry?"  as  if  he 
would  ask  if  the}7  had  been  informed. 

His  grandchildren,  Harry  and  Nellie,  entered  the  room, 
and  stood,  hand-in-hand,  looking  at  him  with  childish  sur- 
prise and  sorrow  depicted  in  their  tearful  eyes.  The  sight 
overpowered  him,  and  he  motioned  to  have  them  taken 
away. 

Speaking,  afterwards,  of  the  first  fearful  night  which  fol- 
lowed the  disaster,  he  said  to  his  plrysician,  "  What  a  night 
that  was,  doctor !  He  scourged  me,  and  then  He  bound  up 
my  wounds  ; "  and,  bringing  his  hands  together,  the  back 
of  the  right  hand  into  the  palm  of  the  left,  —  a  gesture 
which  his  children  and  friends  remember  his  using  fre- 
quently when  he  was  greathy  moved,  —  he  added,  "How 
good  He  is."  Of  the  same  time  he  said,  also,  in  his  ex- 
pressive manner  :  "  Dr.  C.'s  face  told  the  story." 


HOPE  AXD  ITS    VALUE.  401 

The  first  and  only  superficial  examination  of  his  wounds 
did  not  indicate  the  real  peril  of  his  situation.  The  sur- 
geons pronounced  his  case  serious,  but  not  dangerous. 
The  subsequent  probing  of  the  hurts  caused  them  to  reverse 
this  opinion ;  and  indeed  before  midnight,  such  alarming 
symptoms  appeared,  that  the  chief  surgeon  thought  he 
would  sink  and  die  immediately  from  loss  of  blood.  He 
admonished  the  only  son  present  of  the  danger,  and  sug- 
gested the  importance  of  his  father's  immediate^  making 
any  needful  arrangements  of  his  affairs.  When  the  son 
answered  that  there  were  none  needing  to  be  made,  the 
surgeon  said, — 

"Then  I  want  the  power  of  hope  in  his  own  bosom  to 
help  save  him.  We  may  stay  the  blood ;  and,  if  he  has 
the  stimulus  of  hopo,  it  may  be  the  feather  whose  weight 
will  turn  the  scale  in  his  favor." 

To  enforce  his  view,  he  instanced  the  case  of  General 
Shields,  who  was  shot  through  the  lungs,  in  the  Mexican 
war,  and  who  was  saved  from  sinking  by  precisely  this 
mental  power. 

This  measure  of  suggesting  a  false  hope  to  the  sufferer 
occasioned  some  perplexit}^  to  his  children.  The  son  rea- 
soned aloud,  with  himself  rather  than  with  the  surgeon,  — 
"  Father  is  ready ;  there  is  nothing  to  fear  for  him;  but, 
can  Ave  see  him  go  with  no  word  of  farewell  and  bless- 
ing?" The  exigence  seemed  great,  and  not  a  moment 
was  to  be  lost,  when  he  added,  "  Doctor,  I  leave  him  in 
your  hands,"  and  the  stricken  son  turned  to  his  only 
Helper. 

The  doctor  returned  to  the  .crimsoned  bed,  and  bent  over 
the  fainting,  gasping  sufferer,  who  looked  up  into  his  face 
with  a  gaze  which  those  only  can  comprehend  who  stand 

34* 


402  MEMOIR    OF   GEORGE   N.    BRIGGS. 

betwixt  the  living  and  the  dead,  and,  with  stifled  accents, 
said,  — 

"  Doctor,  I  shall  die  !  " 

Calm  and  hopeful,  the  dark  eyes  of  the  physician  re- 
turned his  gaze,  and,  with  a  quiet,  confident  tone,  his  lips 
answered  the  touching  appeal,  —   • 

"  Oh,  no,  Governor,  you  will  live  many  years,  we  hope." 

The  momentary  inspiration  of  hope  had  the  desired  effect. 
With  God's  blessing  that  crisis  passed,  and  a  week  of 
peaceful  life  succeeded,  bequeathing  to  his  family  priceless 
memories,  which  transmute  sorrow  into  thankfulness. 

His  daughter  was  at  her  home  in  Xew  Bedford  when  the 
accident  occurred,  and  did  not  reach  the  melancholy  scene 
of  it  until  the  next  evening.  She  was  accompanied  by  her 
husband,  and  when  they  entered  together  the  father's  cham- 
ber he  was  lying  quite  tranquil,  and  without  pain.  But 
alas,  "  his  visage  was  so  marred  !  "  His  soul  yearning 
towards  his  children  with  all  the  energy  and  tenderness  of 
his  loving  nature,  he  pointed  up  and  uttering  only  one 
word,  calmed  with  it  their  tumultuous  agony,  which  was 
ready  to  overwhelm  them.  uXone,"  says  his  daughter, 
"  none  who  saw  it  can  ever  forget  the  marvellous  expres- 
sion of  his  eyes  as  he  uttered  that  one  word  — '  God  !  '  " 

From  the  moment  of  her  arrival,  his  daughter  was  con- 
stantly at  his  side,  and  to  her  faithful  memory  and  pen  the 
biographer  is  indebted  for  the  mournful,  but  yet  deeply  in- 
teresting, details  of  his  last  days  on  earth.  Her  narrative 
of  her  tender  vigils  would  be  given  without  modification, 
if  some  abridgment  of  its  details  were  not  quite  neces- 
sary.    For  the  most  part  her  own  words  will  be  employed : 

"After  the  first  forty-eight  hours,"  she  says,  "he  had  no  suffer- 


HIS  FAITHFUL  XUESE.  403 

ing,  and  so  entirely  healthful  "was  his  condition,  that  there  was 
nothing  but  quiet  waiting  for  the  processes  of  nature  to  go  on. 
Few  anodynes  were  needed,  and  nothing  checked  or  changed  the 
perfectly  vigorous  play  of  every  faculty.  There  was,  perhaps, 
never  more  of  sweetness  or  of  dignity  in  his  presence,  than  when 
he  lay  on  those  white  pillows  which  were  yet  to  support  his  dying 
head.  He  was  not  allowed  by  his  surgeons  to  speak  much,  but  his 
whispered  utterances,  though  sometimes  checked  by  our  anxiety, 
were  of  unspeakable  value  to  us.  The  surgeons  and  his  own 
family  physician  .never  gave  us  reason  to  hope  for  his  recovery, 
after  the  extent  and  nature  of  the  wound  were  fully  understood ; 
yet  so  firm  was  the  nervous  tone  of  his  system  and  so  unimpaired 
his  constitution,  that  when  no  unfavorable  symptom  appeared,  the 
thought  would  arise  in  our  hearts,  that  with  such  a  pulse  and  with 
such  general  health  and  vigor,  he  might  pass  the  critical  point, 
and  survive." 

The  day  after  the  terrible  disaster,  Mr.  Scofield,  a  most 
experienced  nurse,  came  to  attend  him  ;  and  no  one  gave 
him  more  real  comfort  than  this  faithful  helper,  who  early 
and  late  was  at  his  bedside,  and  whose  ministrations  did 
not  cease  till  his  body  was  laid  in  the  grave.  The  sick 
always  enjoy  the  assistance  of  the  strong  and  cheerful,  and 
this  man,  six  feet  tall,  broad-chested,  with  a  genial  face, 
had  most  rare  skill  as  a  nurse.  The  daughter,  recalling 
his  ministrations  to  her  beloved  and  suffering  father, 
says,  — 

"  His  action,  though  firm  and  decided,  was  never  sudden,  and  he 
would  move  about  the  bed,  and  if  need  be  take  his  place  upon  it, 
with  the  nimbleness  of  a  kitten.  He  would  place  his  strong  arms 
beneath  the  noble  form,  and  lift  him  steadily  and  tenderly  as  a 
mother  might  raise  a  sleeping  babe. 

"  The  pillows  were  always  'just  right,'  and  the  bedclothes  folded 
smoothly  across  the  bed,  when  S.  was  there;  and  no  one,  like  him, 
could  always  arrange  the  bed  so  that  there  should  be  '  no  bad  place 


404  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  JJRIGGS. 

iii  it.'     '  The  bed   is  just  as  nice  in  the  morning,'  he  said  to  me 
once,  '  when  S.  watches,  as  when  he  first  makes  it.' 

"Father  had  frequently,  during  the  last  year  of  his  life,  met  S. 
in  the  sick-rooms  of  several  very  dear  friends,  as  one  followed 
another  to  the  grave.  So,  while  in  health,  he  had  become  attached 
to  him  as  a  nurse,  besides  being  interested  in  him  in  his  business, 
which  was  that  of  a  machinist.  Only  a  short  time  before  my 
father  received  his  injury,  Scofield  came  to  summon  him  to  the 
bedside  of  one  of  these  departing  friends,  and  of  this  occasion 
the  former  related  to  me  this  reminiscence  :  '  As  we  walked  along 
together,  your  father  looked  very  grave,  and  did  not  smile  as 
usual.  He  said,  "  "We  meet  often  in  the  sick-room,  Scofield.  It  is 
a  blessed  thing,  in  a  sick-chamber,  to  have  those  about  us  in  whom 
we  have  confidence."  Then  he  turned  to  me  and  said,  "  Scofield,  I 
shall  want  you  before  long.' " 

"'What  for?' I  asked. 

" '  If  anything  happens  to  me  I  shall  want  you  to  take  care  of 
me.  I  shall  want  to  see  you  about  me.  You  always  seem  cheer- 
ful.' 

"  ;  Well,  Governor,'  I  replied,  '  I  will  come  if  I  possibly  can.' 

S.  was  inclined  to  be  amused  with  the  request, '  and  when  I  went 
home,'  he  said,  '  I  told  my  wife  I  had  another  place  engaged ;  the 
Governor  wants  me.' 

"  '  Why,'  said  she,  'is  the  Governor  sick?'  'No;  but  he  says 
he  shall  want  me  before  long.' 

"  '  Well,'  she  replied,  '  he  has  spoken  in  season.' 

" '  Of  course  this  conversation  was  recalled  with  singular  impres- 
siveness  when  I  was  so  soon  reminded  of  my  promise.  When  I  first 
came  into  the  room,  the  day  after  the  Governor  was  hurt,  he 
grasped  my  hand  and  looked  up  into  my  face  without  saying  a 
word;  and  as  I  bent  over  him  and  was  looking  at  the  wound,  he 
patted  my  head  and  said,  "  I  am  glad  to  see  you."  I  said,  "  Gov- 
ernor, I  little  thought  you  would  want  me  so  soon."  The  first 
thing  he  asked  me  to  give  him  was  water.  He  was  quiet  for 
half  an  hour,  and  then  I  asked  him  when  he  looked  up  at  me, 
"  Governor,  are  you  in  pain? "  "Not  in  the  least,"  he  said.  I  said, 
"  Governor,  it  looks  bad.     I  am  sorry  to  see  it."    He  replied,  "  It  ia 


HIS  DAUGHTER'S  MEMORIALS  OF  HIS  LAST  DA  YS.       40. J 

all  right,  Scofield."  He  then  added,  "  I  wanted  you  last  night  when 
I  couldn't  make  them  understand." 

"  '  I  was  always  welcomed  with  a  happy  smile,  and  though  he 
often  insisted  upon  my  leaving  the  sick-room  for  rest  and  sleep, 
he  never  rested  so  sweetly  as  when  I  was  near  him.  When  it  was 
proposed  to  send  for  another  attendant,  the  Governor  said,  "  You 
want  rest,  Scof  eld,  but  I  want  you  to  be  with  me  all  you  can  be." 
Two  days  before  he  died,  I  said,  "Governor,  it  is  hard  to  see  you 
suffer  so."  He  replied,  "  S.,  I  have  had  no  pain."  The  day  before 
he  died,  he  beckoned  to  me  to  him,  and  laying  his  hand  over  my 
head,  he  said,  "  S.,"  will  you  do  all  for  me,  everything?  Dr.  C.  will 
help  you,  but  I  want  you  to  take  charge  of  everything;  you  know 
how."  I  said,  "  I  will,  Governor."  "Well,  you  are  a  good  man; 
and  you  know  how."  ' 

"  And  he  did  know  how,  — lingering  to  catch  his  faintest  whisper, 
and  to  anticipate  every  want ;  and  he  did  for  my  beloved  father  the 
last  offices  that  human  hands  can  perform." 

Friday,  Sept.  6th,  while  his  son-in-law  was  sitting  beside 
him,  he  wrote  on  the  slate  :  "  I  thought  that  day  I  should 
be  in  eternity  in  one  minute!  I  think  I  was  perfectly  calm. 
Your  poor,  feeble  mother  was  wonderfully  calm,  and  saw 
everything  as  it  was." 

His  daughter  affords  us  here,  a  glimpse  of  such  a  death- 
chamber —  as  that  of  which  the  Christian  poet  so  expres- 
sively says  :  — 

"  The  chamber  where  the  good  man  meets  his  fate, 
Is  privileged  beyond  the  common  walks, 
Quite  to  the  verge  of  Heaven." 

"  On  Sabbath  morning,  September  8th,  Capt.  Bigelow  came 
down  a  little  late  and  found  him  comfortable,  and  meditating  upon 
his  bed.  The  sun  shone  brightly  into  the  window.  He  greeted 
him  lovingly  with  the  large,  full  tones  of  his  voice,  and  said,  '  I 
have  been  thinking  what  a  morning  this  would  have  been  in 
Heaven ; '  meaning  that  it  would  have  been  his  first  Sabbath  there. 


406  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  K.  BRIGGS. 

"  Another  morning,  as  I  was  bathing  his  face  and  hands,  as  he 
lay  calm  and  quiet  in  the  pleasant  stillness  of  the  dawn,  he  asked 
for  the  slate  and  wrote,  '  Oh,  how  I  want  to  be  in  Heaven.' 

"  'Yes,  father,'  I  said,  'we  ought  to  be  willing  to  have  you  go, 
but  we  want  to  keep  you  here.' 

"  The  trees  in  the  avenue  leading  to  the  house  were  every  one 
to  him  like  a  friend.  One  large,  benevolent-looking  maple-tree  I 
always  called  his  tree,  because  among  the  other  trees,  stately  and 
graceful  as  they  are,  this  well-rounded,  wide-spreading  maple, 
yielding  its  sweetness  in  the  spring,  and  drooping  its  deep,  restful 
shadows  over  our  path  in  the  summer,  —  where  so  many  birds  found 
a  home,  —  made  me  think  of  him.  I  once  told  him  so,  and  he  said 
that  it  was  pleasant  to  be  associated  with  such  an  object  in  nature. 
In  the  early  autumn,  this  tree  alone  held  out  one  bleeding,  deep- 
dyed  coronal  of  leaves  for  the  wreath  we  laid  upon  his  coffin.  On 
this  pleasant  morning  I  told  him  the  only  bright  leaves  were  on  his 
tree.  We  were  looking  upon  the  beautiful  prospect,  half  hidden, 
half  revealed,  through  the  mist  that  overhung  the  river  as  the  sun 
was  rising.     With  a  radiant  countenance,  he  wrote  on  the  slate,  — 

" '  Sweet  fields  beyond  the  swelling  flood, 
Stand  dressed  in  living  green ; 

•  ••••* 

There  everlasting  spring  abides, 
And  never-withering  flowers," 

and  then  he  pointed  up,  with  a  rapture  that  made  me  feel  Heaven 
was  very  near." 

At  one  time,  his  wife  had  the  impression  that  he  was 
desponding,  which  led  some  one  to  make  a  remark  about 
it,  and  he  replied  in  writing  :  — 

"  How  you  all  misunderstand  me.  No  low  spirits  !  You  are  all 
so  kind.     But  Heaven,  Heaven  is  much  better." 

His  daughter  then  recalled  the  cheerful  views  Mr. 
Amos  Lawrence,  when  in  his  usual  health,  cherished  of  the 
other  life  ;  and  assured  him  that  he  was  not  misunderstood, 


HE  A  VENL  Y-MIXDEDXESS.  40  7 

but  that  all  his  family  knew  his  feelings  were  the  emotions 
of  a  man  stricken  of  God,  and  who  felt  that  he  was  in 
the  hands  of  a  pitiful  Father.  He  looked  so  happy,  reply- 
ing only  by  his  silence. 

"  When,"  continues  his  daughter,  "we  were  arranging  his  pil- 
lows, he  said,  *  How  much  trouble  you  have.'  Then  he  wrote, 
1  How  I  love  you  all.  I  have  not  seen  little  George  or  Mary  or 
Nelly  to-day.'  To  Dr.  C.  he  said,  c  I  am  afraid  you  are  going  to 
cure  me,  doctor ;  I  want  to  be  in  Heaven.'  He  said,  at  another 
time,  '  Dear  Henry ! '  (and  the  tears  gushed  into  his  eyes,  and  the 
poor,  wounded  chin  quivered),  '  If  I  should  go,'  pointing  up  and 
raising  his  eyes,  '  and  he  should  be  killed,  what  a  meeting  it  would 
be ! '  'I  have  done  nothing,  nothing,''  he  said  one  day  when  he 
seemed  very  comfortable,  and  we  were  all  very  hopeful.  He  had 
been  happy  in  having  us  in  his  room  and  hearing  us  talk.  He  said, 
'Perhaps  He  will  restore  me.  If  He  does,  for  what?  '  '  He  will 
show  you  for  what,  father,'  one  of  us  said ;  '  He  will  guide  you 
with  His  eye.'  With  a  confidence  that  surprised  me  at  the  mo- 
ment, because  so  unlike  his  prevailing  doubtfulness  in  other  sick- 
nesses, he  said,  '  I  am  His  forever.'  Then,  with  great  emotion 
and  solemnity,  moving  his  hands  and  raising  his  eyes  to  Heaven, 
he  added  slowly,  '  His  forever ; '  and  as  if  breathing  vows  of  con- 
secration, he  continued,  '  Life  or  death,  sickness  or  health,  I  am 
His  forever.'  Once  speaking  to  mother,  with  a  firm  and  rapturous 
anticipation  of  Heaven,  he  said  to  her,  '  You  never  heard  me  say 
this  before.'" 

He  strenuously  advised  that  his  son  Henry  should  not 
be  summoned  home,  as  he  knew  McClellan's  arm}',  with 
which  he  was  connected,  was  in  hourly  expectation  of  being 
called  into  action.  He  occasionally  inquired  concerning 
events  that  were  passing  in  the  world,  but  usually  pre- 
ferred not  to  be  excited  with  such  tidings.  He  seemed  to 
have  surrendered  all  anxiety  concerning  human  affairs. 
Only  a  few  hours  before  he  fell  asleep,  a  message  from  the 


408  MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

absent  and  grieving  son  reached  him :  "  Tell  our  dear 
father  how  much  I  love  and  honor  him."  The  dying  father 
received  the  greeting  of  his  heroic  son  with  a  heavenly 
expression  of  pleasure. 

"A  few  days  after  he  was  hurt,"  says  the  daughter  again,  "the 
most  natural  and  loving  expression  came  back  to  his  face ;  all  the 
discoloration  and  swelling  disappeared,  and  the  lips  were  flexible 
and  flushed  as  in  health.  One  morning,  when  I  bent  over  and 
kissed  them,  and  told  him  the  old  smile  had  come  back  to  them,  a 
single  tender  word  and  a  tear  in  his  eye,  told  me  how  sweet  life 
was,  even  then,  standing,  as  he  did,  on  the  verge  of  heaven. 

"  When  his  eldest  brother  came  in  to  see  him,  the  head  covered 
with  whitened  locks  was  bent  tenderly  over  him.  My  father 
received  him  most  lovingly,  saying,  '  Once  more  this  side  of 
heaven ; '  then  caressingly,  and  almost  like  a  mother  fondling  the 
head  of  her  little  boy,  he  wound  the  silver  curls  around  his  fingers, 
and  added,  '  White  hairs.'    He  trusted  himself  to  say  no  more. 

"  When  his  youngest  sister  came,  with  her  husband,  and  could 
not  keep  back  her  tears,  her  whole  frame  shaken  with  the  tremor 
of  her  soul,  he  said,  with  a  firm  voice  and  a  most  serene  expres- 
sion, '  Clouds  and  darkness  are  round  about  His  throne ;  His  ways 
are  past  finding  out.' 

"  September  the  tenth,"  continues  Mrs.  Bigelow,  "  was  a  day  of 
great  peace  and  quiet.  He  said  to  me,  '  It  is  calm  below,  but,  oh, 
how  calm  and  great  and  good  above !  Oh,  that  this  poor,  frail, 
unworthy  one  were  there.'  Again  he  said,  '  I  must  necessarily  be 
much  alone  henceforth ;  why  should  I  wish  to  live  ? '  Thinking  he 
might  be  dwelling  upon  the  change  in  his  life  which  would  be 
likely  to  follow  in  consequence  of  his  injury,  I  suggested  the 
resources  which  art  has  at  command  for  repairing  the  mutilations 
aud  losses  of  the  human  frame ;  when  he  shook  his  head,  and  said, 
'  Xo,  no,'  evidently  choosing  not  to  contemplate  any  contingency 
of  that  kind. 

"  About  noon  the  wearisomeness  and  feverishness  became  quite 
marked,  and  his  tones  and  manner  grew  languid.     Patient  and 


PATIENCE.  409 

quiet,  he  seemed  to  be  withdrawing  from  all  around,  to  rest  with 
perfect  peace  in  God,  his  Eefuge. 

"When  the  surgeons  came,  about  four  o'clock  p.  if.,  to  dress 
the  wound  as  usual,  Dr.  H.  Childs1  accompanied  them;  and  never, 
in  his  brightest  days,  was  their  meeting  more  cheerful ;  and  before 
parting,  they  exchanged  the  liveliest  expressions  of  delight  in  the 
prospect  of  another  life,  which,  in  the  course  of  events,  must  not 
be  very  distant. 

"When  wakened,  an  hour  later,  from  a  quiet  sleep,  he  wrote, 
thus,  for  his  son  George  :  — 

"  '  I  am  at  the  lowest  point  of  animal  existence.  Don't  see  how 
I  can  be  saved.  Have  no  wish  for  it.  God  and  Christ  are  my  all. 
I  love  you.  Do  what  you  think  best.  Leave  all  to  God  —  God  — 
God.' 

"That  night  passed  without  pain,  but  with  more  restlessness; 
and  the  morning  found  him  feeling  not  quite  so  strong.  Mother, 
with  her  unfailing  and  quickened  perceptions,  saw  a  change  in  his 
general  tone  which  I  had  not  perceived,  though  he  must  have  been 
conscious  of  it  himself.  Larger  doses  of  quinine  and  an  increase 
of  stimulants  were  thought  to  be  necessary.  He  gently  remon- 
strated, saying,  '  I  have  not  in  thirteen  years  so  sensibly  felt  the 
effects  of  medicines  as  to-day.'  "When  Dr.  C.  said,  pleasantly, 
'  You  must  consider  yourself  a  sick  man,  now,  and  allow  us  to 
judge  what  is  best  for  you,'  he  acquiesced,  and  gave  himself  no 
more  anxiety,  though  he  kept  his  medicines  in  his  own  charge  till 
no  more  were  administered. 

"  This  was  the  critical  day;  and  we  were  not  surprised  that  it 
seemed  likely  to  be  a  less  favorable  day.  Though  we  had  not 
allowed  ourselves  to  be  encouraged  with  hope  of  his  recovery,  yet 
unconsciously  we  felt  a  slight  depression  as  the  morning  wore  on. 
Yet  it  was  impossible  to  realize  that  death  was  now  approaching. 
On  this  last  day,  after  he  was  conscious,  no  doubt,  that  all  would 
soon  be  over,  he  did  not  trust  himself  to  speak  much  with  mother. 
His  eye  followed  her  all  day  with  closest  attention;  and  I  have 


1  The  father  of  one  of  his  surgeons,  for  many  years  an  eminent  practitioner, 
and  still,  as  then,  President  of  the  Berkshire  Medical  College. 
35 


410  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.  BR1GGS. 

never  so  fully  realized,  as  since  he  is  gone,  how  fondly  the  dying 
cling  to  their  beloved  ones.    For  who,  — 

"  '  This  pleasing,  anxious  being  e'er  resigned, — 
Left  the  warm  precincts  of  the  cheerful  day, 
Nor  cast  one  longing,  lingering  look  behind  ? ' 

"  Quite  late  in  the  afternoon,  he  called  attention  to  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  room.  Asking  for  the  slate,  he  wrote  to  one  of  his 
attendants,  'Look  at  the  mercury;  how  is  it?'  From  the  hushed 
voices  and  movements  in  his  room,  when  the  surgeons  paid  their 
last  visit,  at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  it  was  evident  a  change 
had  passed  over  all  the  scene ;  and  when  I  entered,  as  they  were 
taking  leave,  I  met  his  earnest,  saddened,  and  inquiring  gaze.  I 
met  the  look  with  the  cheerful  response  which  my  lips  were  then 
able  to  give,  speaking  encouragingly  to  him  of  rest.  He  looked  so 
tired,  as  he  lay,  panting,  in  the  great  conflict,  the  stress  of  which 
was  now  very  near.  Soon  his  physician,  Dr.  C,  arrived,  and,  on 
entering  the  room,  saw  that  his  friend  and  patient  was  much 
changed  since  morning.  He  was  in  a  raging  fever.  He  wrote 
upon  the  slate,  in  answer  to  some  questions,  '  I  have  taken  twenty- 
nve  drops  of  quinine  every  three  hours.'  Presently  the  doctor  sat 
down  by  his  bedside,  and  felt  his  pulse.  My  father  asked,  '  How 
is  it?'  'A  little  more  frequent,'  was  the  repty,  the  physician's 
face  revealing  more  than  his  words  to  the  searching,  silent  ques- 
tioner. My  father  then  asked  for  the  slate,  and  wrote,  in  as  fair, 
firm  words  as  his  hand  ever  traced,  '  I  want  to  be  placed  in  a  plain, 
metallic  case,'  —  the  last  words  he  ever  wrote.  He  gave  the  slate 
to  the  doctor,  looking  at  him  with  a  firm,  tranquil  countenance. 
Not  a  word  was  spoken.  The  doctor  handed  the  slate  across  the 
bed  to  me.  Oh,  the  silence  and  agony  of  that  moment !  After 
x^ite  a  severe  paroxysm  of  coughing  which  immediately  followed, 
the  weary  sufferer  sunk  into  a  refreshing  slumber.  When  he 
awoke,  about  six  o'clock  p.  m.,  he  was  again  disturbed  by  cough- 
ing. I  was  summoned  hastily,  by  mother,  to  his  side.  I  sat  down 
beside  him,  when  he  laid  his  hand  in  mine,  and,  opening  his  eyes, 
looked  full  into  my  face.  His  expression  was  sweet  and  calm. 
The  anxious  look  was  all  gone.     He  said,  firmly,  'It  will  come 


HIS  DEATH.  411 

pretty  soon.'  I  could  not  make  my  heart  believe  his  words,  and 
instinctively  said,  '  What,  father,  do  you  say  ? '  Then  he  looked  at 
me  again,  just  as  calm  and  loving  as  before,  but  he  changed  his 
voice  into  a  most  pitying  and  tender  tone,  repeating,  '  It  will  come  — 
pretty  soon.'  '  Why,  father,'  my  heart  answered,  hopefully,  •  your 
pulses  are  better  than  they  were  an  hour  ago.  We  don't  think  so.' 
Then  he  said,  You  won't  leave  me  again,  will  you? '  •  No,  father, 
I  shall  stay  here  all  night.'  Then  he  fondled  my  hands  with  his 
own,  never  so  tenderly,  I  thought,  gave  a  little  nod,  very  charac- 
teristic of  him  when  he  felt  entirely  satisfied,  and  immediately 
sank  into  a  gentle  sleep.  He  never  woke  again.  Sixteen  long 
hours  that  dear  hand  lay  motionless  in  mine,  warm  as  his  dear 
heart  through  life  —  till  life  was  gone.  The  dear  Lord  had  kindly 
closed,  in  painless  sleep,  the  eyes  of  him  who  once  so  much  feared 
to  meet  death.  And  so,  not  the  suffering  of  beloved  ones,  sleep- 
less through  all  that  night  of  dying ;  not  the  heart-rending  sob  of 
the  devoted  wife,  bowed  on  the  pillow  beside  him ;  not  the  cold 
drops  that  returned  as  fast  as  loving  hands  could  wipe  them  from 
his  white  forehead ;  not  even  the  laboring  breath  and  poor,  flutter- 
ing heart  in  his  own  bosom, —brought  one  pang  of  suffering  to 
his  serene  spirit,  as  he  passed  through  the  dark  valley.  There  is 
a  peculiar  sense  in  which  was  fulfilled  to  him  the  promise,  « Verily, 
verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  a  man  keep  my  saying,  he  shall  not  see 
death.'  The  prayer  of  his  life  was  fully  answered  at  last.  He 
lived  the  life  of  the  righteous,  and  died  his  peaceful  death.  At 
nine  o'clock  on  Thursday  morning,  September  12th,  his  breathing 
ceased,  and  the  seal  of  death  was  set  upon  his  placid  face  and 
noble  form.     '  Having  believed,  he  entered  into  rest.'  " 


CHAPTER    XXXIII. 

SAD  TIDINGS  OX  THE  WING  — ECHOES  FROM  THE  PRESS — SORROW  THROUGH- 
OUT BERKSHIRE  —  THE  DEATH-CHAMBER — FUNERAL  RITES  AT  THE 
HOUSE  —  ASLEEP  IN  JESUS — PROCESSION  TO  THE  CHURCH  —  DISTIN- 
GUISHED MOURNERS  —  FUNERAL  HYMNS  —  THE  SCENE  DESCRIBED  —  DR. 
PORTER'S  TEXT  —  VIEWING  THE  FACE  OF  THE  DEAD  —  A  MOURNER  IN 
RAGS  — GOING  TO  THE  GRAVE  — PUBLIC  MEETINGS  AND  TESTIMONIALS 
—  CONCLUSION. 

=*HE  tidings  of  his  death  spread  rapidly,  and  carried 
sorrow  to  many  hearts  in  widely-separated  regions 
'$£&&  °^  ^ne  country-  The  telegraph  flashed  the  sad 
news  from  city  to  city,  and  the  religions  and  secu- 
lar press  alike  commemorated  the  event.  The  fol- 
lowing tribute  from  the  columns  of  the  Watchman  and 
Reflector,  a  leading  Baptist  journal,  —  a  contribution  by  a 
correspondent  in  New  York,  —  will  indicate  the  spirit  and 
tone  of  the  eulogies  which  expressed,  rather  than  directed, 
the  sorrow  of  the  great  Christian  public  :  — 

"  Towards  the  close  of  last  week  the  hearts  of  thousands  iu  this 
State,  as  wrell  as  far  abroad  through  the  land,  were  saddened  by 
the  intelligence  of  the  great  loss  sustained  by  Massachusetts,  in 
the  death  of  Ex-Governor  Briggs.  Few  men  ia  this  nation  were 
more  truly  honored,  more  profoundly  loved.  Few  men  in  public 
life  have  ever  exhibited  a  combination  of  intellectual  and  moral  qual- 
ities so  well  adapted  to  inspire  universal  confidence.  His  character 
was  transparent.  His  aims  were  high  and  honorable.  Every  one 
who  approached  him  trusted  in  him.  Every  one  felt  assured  that 
he  was  incapable  of  deception.  As  a  man,  a  citizen,  a  statesman, 
and  a  Christian,  he  stood  far  above  all  partyism,  and  commanded 

412 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  PRESS.  413 

respect  from  men  of  every  class  of  society  and  every  grade  of  polit- 
ical opinion.  He  was  '  a  mighty  prince  amongst  us ; '  he  swayed  a 
potent  sceptre;  in  an  important  sense  it  may  be  said  that  his 
honors  were  undisputed,  because  men  felt  proud  of  conceding 
them ;  and  in  many  a  contest  he  gained  an  easy  conquest,  because 
no  man  felt  humiliated  by  yielding  him  the  palm  of  victory. 

"  While  in  Congress  his  influence  over  men  from  every  part  of 
the  country  was  very  great ;  gentle,  but  effective.  The  decided  and 
earnest  advocate  of  temperance,  he  revolutionized  the  sentiments 
of  many  with  whom  he  associated,  while  the  most  dissipated,  who 
were  wasting  the  finest  gifts  of  genius  '  in  riotous  living,'  attested 
his  sincerity,  and  greeted  him  as  a  manly  and  honest  friend. 
Hence  it  has  been  seen  that  in  the  most  stormy  times,  when  the 
elements  of  discord  were  raging  with  the  utmost  fury,  no  chair- 
man could  so  well  rule  the  House  in  committee  of  the  whole, 
because  all  alike  confided  in  his  sagacity,  his  firmness,  and  his 
impartiality.  Never  did  true  Christian  manliness  win  triumphs 
more  enduring. 

"  At  the  same  time  this  man,  so  honored  in  his  place  within  the 
halls  of  legislation,  might  be  seen,  at  the  set  hours,  occupying  his 
place  in  a  very  different  sphere,  namely,  the  meeting  for  prayer 
and  conference.  It  was  there  that  he  seemed  to  inhale  a  new  life, 
and  receive  new  strength  for  his  great  life-battles.  At  Washing- 
ton, Governor  Briggs  was  the  same  man  and  the  same  simple- 
hearted  Christian  that  he  was  in  his  own  town  and  his  own  family 
circle. 

"  Regarded  as  a  whole,  his  character  was  of  that  sterling  kind 
which  always  appears  with  some  particular  advantage  in  every 
new  position  from  which  it  may  disclose  itself  to  the  eye  of  the 
most  critical  observer.  A  memoir  of  him,  fairly  written,  without 
any  attempt  at  embellishment,  would  be  a  most  valuable  gift  to 
every  young  man  in  America,  especially  to  every  one  who  may  be 
commencing  a  professional  career,  and  intent  upon  carving  out 
his  fortune  with  his  own  sturdy  hand." 

The  feeling  throughout  Berkshire  was  of  a  still   pro- 
founder  type.     The  people  universally  deplored  the  loss  of 

35* 


414  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE.  N.  BRIGGS. 

a  personal  friend  or  of  a  public  benefactor.  The  manifold 
excellences  of  him  who  had  been  so  suddenly  and  strangely 
removed  from  them,  shone  out  with  surpassing  effect  from 
the  deep  shadows  of  death  that  encompassed  him.  There 
was  unfeigned  grief  throughout  the  village  ;  and  slowly  or 
swiftly  it  rolled  its  tides  along  the  beautiful  valleys,  and 
climbed  the  hill-sides,  until  every  home,  lofty  and  lowly 
alike,  was  invaded  by  the  presence  of  almost  a  household 
affliction.  Old  men  and  children,  3'oung  men  and  maidens, 
felt  themselves  personally  bereaved. 

During  the  few  days  which  elapsed  between  his  death 
and  the  funeral,  great  numbers  of  all  classes  and  conditions 
of  the  people  came  to  gaze  upon  his  lifeless  remains. 
Their  sorrowing  looks  were  answered  by  no  sadness  on  his 
cla3T-cold  face. 

"  As  if  it  were,"  says  one  who  beheld  that  face  in  death,  "  a  last 
expression  of  kindness,  a  benignant  smile,  returned  the  gaze  of 
sorrowful  ones  who  looked  upon. him  as  he  lay  '  asleep  in  Jesus.' 
There  was  no  desolateness  in  the  room  where  the  pale  form 
reposed.  The  gloom  of  death  was  banished,  and  Death  himself 
seemed  awed  by  the  majestic,  solemn  presence  of  that  body  which 
in  the  morning  of  the  resurrection  shall  be  raised  incorruptible, 
when  shall  be  brought  to  pass  that  saying,  '  Death  is  swallowed 
up  in  victory.'  " 

The  funeral  rites  were  performed  on  Saturday  afternoon, 
—  first  at  the  family  residence,  and  immediately  afterwards 
at  the  Baptist  Church  in  the  village,  where  he  had  been  for 
so  long  a  time  a  reverent  worshipper  and  a  revered  pattern 
of  practical  piety. 

The  services  at  both  places  were  conducted  by  his  beloved 
pastor,  Rev.  Lemuel  Porter,  D.  D.  At  the  house,  Dr. 
Porter  was  assisted  by  Rev.  Dr.  Todd,  whose  personal  rela- 


ASLEEP  IN  JESUS.  415 

tions  of  social  and  christian  intimacy  with  Governor  Briggs 
entitled  him  to  share  in  those  preliminary  obsequies.  In  the 
public  services,  the  pastors  of  the  village  bore  appropriate 
parts. 

The  attendance  of  personal  friends  at  the  home  services 
was  large,  and  unusual  solemnity  and  sacredness  marked 
the  scene.  Besides  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
prayer,  the  following  hymn  was  sung  by  those  present :  — 

"  Asleep  in  Jesus  !  blessed  sleep 
From  which  none  ever  wakes  to  weep  — 
A  calm  and  undisturbed  repose, 
Unbroken  by  the  last  of  foes. 

"  Asleep  in  Jesus  !  oh,  how  sweet 
To  be  for  such  a  slumber  meet, 
"With  holy  confidence  to  sing. 
That  Death  has  lost  his  venomed  sting. 

"  Asleep  in  Jesus  !  peaceful  rest, 
Whose  waking  is  supremely  blest,  — 
No  fear,  no  woe  shall  dim  that  hour 
That  manifests  the  Saviour's  power. 

"  Asleep  in  Jesus  !  oh,  for  me 

May  such  a  blissful  refuge  be; 

Securely  shall  my  ashes  lie, 

And  wait  the  summons  from  on  high." 

A  long  procession  accompanied  the  body  to  the  church. 
Deacon  Daniel  Stearns,  Hon.  Henry  Hubbard,  Hon.  H.  H. 
Childs,  Hon.  Henry  W.  Bishop,  James  Buel,  Esq.,  and 
Calvin  Martin,  were  pall-bearers.  Deacon  Almiron  Fran- 
cis, Hon.  Thos.  Colt,  Hon.  E.  H.  Kellogg,  Robert  Colt, 
George  H.  Laflin,  Henry  Colt,  T.  G.  Atwood,  and  William 
M.  "Walker,  Esqs.,  were  coffin-bearers.     The   hearse   was 


416  MEMOIR    OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS. 

drawn  by  the  favorite  horse  which  had  long  drawn  the  fam- 
ily carriage  of  the  Governor.  Among  the  strangers  from 
abroad  who  were  present,  were  Ex-Governors  Washburn 
and  Clifford  ;  Hon.  Joel  Hay  den,  of  the  Governor's  Council ; 
Oliver  Warner,  of  Northampton,  Secretary  of  State  ;  Col- 
lector Goodrich,  of  Boston  ;  Gen.  H.  K.  Oliver  :  John  Mor- 
rissey,  Sergeant-at-arms  of  the  House  of  Representatives ; 
Senator  Branning ;  Chief  Justice  Bigelow ;  Hon.  Increase 
Sumner ;  Rev.  Israel  P.  "Warren,  Secretary,  and  Edward  S. 
Rand,  Chairman,  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Ameri- 
can Tract  Society,  Boston ;  Rev.  Jonas  G.  Warren,  D.  D., 
Secretary  of  the  Baptist  Missionary  Union,  and  Rev.  John 
Marsh,  Secretary  of  the  American  Temperance  Union. 

In  the  village,  flags  were  displayed  at  half-mast,  the 
places  of  business  were  closed,  and  all  the  bells  tolled  as 
the  procession  moved  along  the  street.  The  pulpit,  and 
indeed  the  church  throughout,  and  the  vacant  place  in  the 
Governor's  pew,  were  draped  in  deepest  mourning.  Every- 
thing about  the  building?  was  in  harmony  with  the  feeling; 
of  the  people.  The  services  here  consisted  of  reading  the 
Scriptures,  by  Rev.  Mr.  Yates,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church ;  prayer,  by  Rev.  Mr.  Dimmock,  of  the  South 
Street  Congregational  Church ;  sermon,  by  Rev.  Dr.  Por- 
"ter  ;  prayer,  by  Rev.  Dr.  Tocld,  of  the  First  Congregational 
Church.     The  following  hymns  were  suns: :  — 

I. 

"  Brother !  though  from  yonder  sky 
Cometh  neither  voice  nor  cry, 
Yet  we  know,  for  thee  to-day 
EverjT  pain  has  passed  away. 

"  Not  for  thee  shall  tears  be  given, 
Child  of  God,  and  heir  of  heaven; 


FUXEEAL   HYMNS.  417 

For  he  gave  thee  sweet  release,  — 
Thine  the  Christian's  death  of  peace. 

"  Well  we  know  thy  living  faith 
Had  the  power  to  conquer  death ; 
As  a  living  rose  may  bloom, 
By  the  border  of  the  tomb. 

"  Brother !  in  that  solemn  trust, 
We  commend  thee  dust  to  dust ;    • 
In  that  faith  we  wait,  till,  risen, 
Thou  shalt  meet  us  all  in  heaven. 

"  While  we  weep,  as  Jesus  wept, 
Thou  shalt  sleep,  as  Jesus  slept ; 
With  thy  Saviour  thou  shalt  rest, 
Crowned  and  glorified  and  blest." 

n. 

"  My  Father's  house  on  high, 

Home  of  my  soul !  how  near, 
At  times,  to  faith's  foreseeing  eye 

Thy  golden  gates  appear. 

"  I  hear  at  morn  and  even, 

At  noon  and  midnight  hour, 
The  choral  harmonies  of  heaven 

Seraphic  music  pour. 

"  Oh,  then,  my  spirit  faints 

To  reach  the  land  I  love,  — 
The  bright  inheritance  of  saints  — 

My  glorious  home  above." 

One  who  participated  in  the  sad  obsequies,  and  in  the 
grief  they  awakened,  says  :  — 

"  The  occasion  drew  together  a  large  concourse  of  people  from 
the  town  and  Berkshire  County,  as  well  us  from  distant  parts  of 


418  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

New  England  and  New  York,  —  all  moved  by  one  common  senti- 
ment of  sympathy  and  sadness,  that  a  great  and  good  man  had 
fallen. 

"  All  classes  were  there,  —  ex-Governors,  judges,  distinguished 
civilians ;  the  representatives  of  benevolent  and  philanthropic 
societies  with  which  Governor  Briggs  had  held  high  official  con- 
nection ;  clergjmien  of  note  in  the  different  denominations ;  law- 
yers, merchants,  farmers,  mechanics,  laborers, — men,  women,  and 
children  from  every  walk  in  life  were  there,  to  drop  a  tear  and 
take  a  last  look  of  him  whom  all  rejoiced  to  claim  as  a  friend. 
Perhaps  no  man  was  ever  so  completely  the  common  property  of 
humanity  at  large,  —  and  hence  the  whole  people  came  to  his  burial. 
It  was  a  solemn  moment,  when  strong  men,  with  slow  and  meas- 
ured step,  passed  up  the  aisle,  and  deposited  in  front  of  the  pulpit 
all  that  was  mortal  of  George  N.  Briggs.  Nor  did  our  hearts  feel 
less  when  our  eye  fell  on  the  widow,  leaning  on  the  arm  of  her 
eldest  son,  George  P.  Briggs ;  on  the  second  son,  with  his  wife 
and  children,  —  the  officer  who  had  that  morning  arrived  from 
the  seat  of  war ;  on  the  only  daughter,  with  her  husband ;  and 
then  on  the  smitten  pastor,  as  he  ascended  the  pulpit,  and,  with 
suppressed  emotion,  opened  the  service.  To  us,  everything  was 
in  mourning,  and  everything  said  and  done  was  in  keeping  with 
the  occasion.  Never  before  did  it  appear,  in  our  view,  so  great 
and  good  a  thing  to  live  and  die  a  Christian. 

"Certainly  never  did  a  truly  Christian  burial  service  —  for  the 
precious  truths  it  embodied  —  seem  fraught  with  such  excellence. 
Dr.  Porter  opened  his  discourse l  with  a  free  and  fervent  exposi- 
tion of  those  words  which  the  Governor  had  written  upon  the 
slate  soon  after  the  fatal  disaster,  '  Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am 
God,'  filling  up  the  remainder  of  the  hour  with  a  simple  and  just 
portraiture  of  the  character  and  acts  of  the  departed.  This  done, 
the  coffin  —  'a  plain,  metallic  case' — was  opened.  It  was  he,  in 
the  embrace  of  death,  — but  still,  it  was  he,  the  noble  man  we  had 
all  seen  and  greeted  so  lovingty,  robed  in  citizen's  dress,  —  his 
head  resting  as  if  in  sleep,  partly  on  one  side,  so  concealing  from 

lSee  Appendix  II. 


THE  SCENE  DESCRIBED.  419 

view  the  terrible  wound,  and  presenting  to  the  eye  an  object  of 
real  attractiveness.  Death,  and  yet  there  was  the  same  manly 
form,  the  same  benignant  expression,  we  had  met  so  many 
times  amid  the  activities  of  life.  How  could  we  give  such  a 
treasure  to  the  grave !  "We  leaned  over  the  desk  as  the  multitude 
passed  by,  made  up  of  every  grade  of  society.  One  persou  fixed 
our  attention.  1  was  a  boy  ten  or  twelve  years  old,  in  poverty  — 
almost  in  rags,  with  nothing  but  a  shirt  and  trousers  to  cover  his 
nakedness,  and  yet,  if  his  face  was  an  index  to  his  heart,  he  was 
in  full  sympathy  with  the  most  richly  dressed  and  sincere  mourn- 
ers. He  came  to  claim  his  share  in  all  that  was  left  of  his  friend, 
the  lover  of  men.  We  looked,  and  as  we  looked  we  understood 
the  secret  of  the  greatness  and  power  of  Governor  Briggs.  We 
understood,  that,  as  nothing  in  human  form  felt  itself  repelled 
from  his  person  when  dead,  so  nothing  wearing  that  form,  how- 
ever degraded  and  lost,  was  repulsed  from  his  presence  when  liv- 
ing. In  that  was  found  his  goodness,  and  his  goodness  was  his 
greatness.  That  made  him  like  Jesus,  the  'friend  of  publicans 
and  sinners.'  There  flashed  upon  us  in  that  instant  a  conception 
of  the  character  of '  God  manifest  in  the  flesh,  and  of  the  spirit  of 
the  Gospel. 

"The  sun  had  already  sunk  behind  the  western  hills  when  we 
reached  the  place  of  burial.  It  was  a  secluded  spot,  in  the  valley 
of  the  '  West  Branch  '  (one  of  the  streams  which  unite  to  form  the 
Housatonic),  a  mile  or  more  away  from  the  centre  of  the  village 
of  Pittsfield  —  a  very  gem,  set  in  the  bosom  of  the  mountains. 
Here,  on  a  slight  elevation,  within  a  neat  hemlock  inclosure,  amid 
sighs  and  songs,  prayers  and  tears,  and  beneath  the  moon  and 
stars,  we  laid  to  rest  his  mortal  remains,  in  the  full  hope  of  the 
resurrection,  and  with  the  comforting  assurance  that  already  his 
spirit  had  realized  the  exceeding  blessedness  of  those  who  hunger 
and  thirst  after  righteousness." 

The  profound  reverence  and  affection  which  were  cher- 
ished for  him  by  all  classes  of  his  fellow-citizens,  originated 
the  call  of  public  meetings  in  both  the  villages  he  had  hon- 
ored and  blest  with  his  residence  while  he  was  in  the  ser- 


420  MEMOIR   OF  GEORGE  N.   BRIGGS. 

vice  of  the  State.  These  meetings  were  thronged  by  the 
people,  and  are  yet  remembered,  as  occasions  of  deep  and 
tender  interest.  Prominent  gentlemen  in  both  places  paid 
tributes  to  his  worth,  and  indulged  in  personal  reminis- 
cences of  his  goodness  and  genial  manner. 

The  Berkshire  Bar  also  held  a  special  meeting  of  com- 
memoration and  condolence.  At  all  these  meetings  reso- 
lutions were  passed,  embodying  the  public  estimate  of  the 
noble  man  and  citizen  gone  to  his  reward,  and  conveying 
to  his  family  expressions  of  unfeigned  sorrow  for  their 
common  loss.1 

This  volume  might  be  greatly  expanded  by  testimonials, 
biographical  notices,  and  letters  of  condolence  from  prom- 
inent men  in  all  the  departments  of  public  life,  and 
especially  of  philanthropic  and  Christian  labor,  —  but  the 
greater  part  of  such  matter  is  necessarily  excluded. 
There  was  reason  for  the  universal  sympathy  and  sorrow 
which  his  death  created,  for  in  that  death  the  noblest  causes 
that  engage  men's  hands  and  inspire  their  hearts  lost  a 
zealous  and  judicious  promoter,  and  the  poor  and  needy 
and  afflicted  lost  a  loving  and  ministering  friend. 

He  was  pre-eminently  one  of  those  of  whom  the  inspired 
seer,  looking  through  the  veil  of  time  into  eternity,  pro- 
claimed their  beatitude,  in  the  immortal  and  comforting 
words,  — 

"  Blessed  are  the  dead  who  die  in  the  Lord  from  henceforth. 
Yea,  saith  the  Spirit,  that  they  may  rest  from  their  labors,  and 
their  works  do  follow  them." 

l  See  Appendix  III. 


HIS    MONUMENT    IN     PITTSEIEED   CEMETERY 


APPENDICES. 


APPENDIX    I. 

THE  BEEKSHIEE  JUBILEE. 

Of  the  copious  records  of  this  festival,  so  beautiful  in  itself, 
and  so  memorable  to  all  the  sons  and  daughters  of  Berkshire, 
more  were  marked  to  be  included  in  this  Appendix  than  the 
bulk  to  which  this  volume  has  grown  will  admit.  To  exclude 
all  account  of  it  would  be  doing  injustice  to  the  occasion  itself, 
and  especially  to  the  eager  interest  and  prominent  part  which 
Governor  Briggs  took  in  its  progress.  The  following  brief 
abstract  therefore  of  the  memorials,  including  nearly  all  the 
Governor's  speech,  with  a  poem  by  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes,  and 
Miss  Sedgwick's  very  entertaining  chapter  of  its  "  Chronicles," 
is  offered  to  the  readers  of  this  Memoir,  with  regret  that  there 
is  not  room  for  more  :  — 

Berkshire  is  the  large  western  county  of  Massachusetts,  extending  from 
Connecticut  to  Vermont,  something  like  fifty  miles  in  length,  and  coutaining 
somewhat  over  forty  thousand  inhabitants.  On  the  east  lie  the  Green  Moun- 
tains, which  shut  it  away  from  the  rest  of  Massachusetts.  On  the  west  are  the 
Taghcannic  Mountains,  which  separate  it  from  Xew  York.  It  is  a  region  of  hill 
and  valley,  mountain  and  lake,  beautiful  rivers  and  laughing  brooks  —  the  very 
Piedmont  of  America.  Till  the  railroad  was  completed,  and  the  iron  horse  came 
puffing  and  snorting  up  over  these  mountains,  Berkshire  had  very  little  inter- 
course with  the  rest  of"  the  Old  Bay  State."  Most  of  its  business  was  done  at 
New  York,  while  with  Xew  York  people  it  had  none  but  a  business  intercourse. 
A  community  thus  secluded,  and  educated  amid  scenery  surpassingly  lovely, 
breathing  the  mountain  air,  and  drinking  the  waters  which  flow  in  thousands  of 
rills  down  their  mountaiu-sides,  till  they  form  the  Housatouic,  or  "river  of  the 

423 


424  APPEXL1X  I. 

hills,"  — must  love  the  home  of  childhood.    For  the  last  fifty  years  Berkshire 
has  been  constantly  sending  out  her  sons  and  daughters  to  other  parts  of  the 
land  to  find  new  homes.    In  the  mean  time  her  own  college  has  grown  up,  offi- 
cered almost  wholly  by  her  own  sons,  till  its  name  is  among  the  first  in  the 
land,  and  the  old  homestead  has  been  steadily  advancing  in  wealth,  enterprise, 
education,  and  morals.    Probably  it  would  be  impossible  to  find  a  county  in  the 
whole  land,  in  which  there  is  more  of  the  home  feeling  than  in  Berkshire;  and, 
wherever  you  go,  if  you  can  hail  from  this  "garden  of  the  Bay  State,"  you  are 
sure  to  find  a  warm  welcome.     Her  sons  are  everywhere  filling  the  highest 
posts  of  influence  and  respectability.    No  less  than  eight  of  these  sons  have  been 
in  Congress  at  the  same  time ;  and  we  believe  the  same  number  were  on  the 
bench  as  judges,  in  a  neighboring  State,  at  the  same  time.    Scattered  over  the 
land,  these  emigrant  sons  have  ever  yearned  towards  the  homes  of  their  fathers. 
By  a  sort  of  electrical  excitement  they  seemed  ripe  for  a  gathering  at  once.    A 
committee  was  raised  in  New  York  to  correspond  with  a  similar  committee  in 
the  county,  and  to  make  preparations  for  celebrating  a  jubilee.    The  arrange- 
ments finally  made  were,  that  on  Thursday,  the  22d  of  August,  1844,  fhe  commit- 
tee from  New  York  and  the  county  committee  should  meet  at  the  Town  Hall,  at 
eleven  o'clock  A.  m.,  where  greetings  and  courtesies  should  be  passed.    The  prep- 
arations to  receive  the  new-comers  were, — 

1.  Every  house,  table,  room,  and  chamber  in  Pittsfield  was  to  be  at  the  service 
of  the  guests,  and  even  in  the  neighboring  towns  the  same  was  done.  No  pains, 
time,  or  money  was  spared  h.  taking  the  fires  burn  brightly  on  the  hearth- 
stones of  each  family.    This  part,  like  many  others,  cannot  be  printed. 

2.  Preparations  were  made  to  have  the  stranger-guests  call  on  the  citizens  of 
Pittsfield  without  ceremony,  and  meet  old  faces  as  they  passed  from  house  to 
house. 

3.  A  register  was  prepared,  in  which  the  emigrant  sons  of  Berkshire  might 
insert  their  names,  time  of  living  in  the  county,  present  place  of  abode,  or  any 
other  memoranda. 

4.  A  stand  and  seats,  sufficient  to  contain  between  three  and  four  thousand 
people,  were  erected  on  a  beautiful  hill  just  west  of  the  village,  and  which  com- 
manded arf%nchanting  view  in  all  directions.  "  The  river  of  the  hills  "  (Housa- 
tonic)  kissed  the  foot  of  the  hill,  while  the  lofty"  Greylock,"  on  the  north,  seemed 
to  look  down  upon  us  as  if  he  was  the  stern  guardian  of  the  valley,  and  father  of 
all  the  beautiful  mountains  which  lay  around. 

5.  The  Rev.  Mark  Hopkins,  D.  D.,  President  of  Williams  College,  was  ap- 
pointed to  greet  the  returning  sons  and  daughters  in  a  sermon. 

6.  The  Hon.  Joshua  A.  Spencer,  of  Utica,  was  appointed  to  deliver  an  oration. 

7.  Music,  secular  and  sacred,  was  provided.  Odes  and  songs  had  been  written 
in  great  abundance,  and  of  superior  excellence.  One  of  the  first  bands  in  the 
county  was  secured  and  brought  on  the  ground  for  the  occasion. 

8.  A  poem  was  assigned  to  the  Rev.  William  Allen,  D.  D.,  of  Northampton, 
and  also  minor  poems  to  others  of  acknowledged  poetical  talents. 

9.  Provision  was  made  for  speeches,  sentiments,  &c. 


THE  BERKSHIRE  JUBILEE.  425 

10.  A  dinner  (at  which  his  Excellency,  Governor  Briggs,  was  to  preside),  all 
dressed  and  cooked  in  Boston,  and  transported  with  all  necessary  furniture  on 
the  railroad,  was  provided  on  the  delightful  grounds  formerly  known  as  "  the 
Military  Grounds,"  and  now  occupied  by  the  Young  Ladies'  Institute.  The 
tables  were  spread  under  a  canopy,  and  capable  of  seating  over  three  thousand 
people.  The  whole  to  be  conducted  on  the  strictest  principles  of  the  temperance 
reformation,  sobriety,  cheerful  and  dignified  friendship. 

Such  were  the  measures  adopted  to  welcome  hearts  that  had  been  throbbing  at 
the  thought  of  the  gathering  all  over  the  United  States.  In  every  part  of  the 
land  little  plans  had  been  laid  by  which  to  bring  families  and  friends  together, 
and  have  friendship  renew  the  oil  in  her  lamps.  It  was  to  be  the  gathering  of  a 
great  family. 

The  dinner  -was  not  only  the  central,  but,  very  reasonably,  the 
most  attractive  point  of  the  three  days'  occurrences.  According 
to  the  plan,  it  was  provided  in  a  spacious  tent  erected  upon  the 
grounds  of  Maplewood,  and  plates  were  laid  for  three  thousand 
guests.  Probably  that  number  sat  down  to  the  bountiful  and 
excellent  entertainment  —  about  equal  numbers  of  both  sexes. 
Grateful  as  the  viands  were  to  the  appetites  of  the  happy  throng, 
most  were  impatient  for  the  after  pleasure,  —  "The  feast  of 
reason  and  the  flow  of  soul,"  — which  was  yet  to  come. 

At  the  head  of  a  raised  table  in  the  centre,  were  the  Pres- 
ident, Governor  Briggs,  Joshua  A.  Spencer,  Esq.,  Judge  Bacon, 
and  others.     A  blessing  was  asked  by  Rev.  Dr.  Shepard. 

The  cloth  having  been  removed,  his  Excellency,  Hon.  George 
X.  Brio-o-s,  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth,  rose  and  addressed 
the  immense  audience  as  follows :  — 

"Brothers  of  Berkshire. —  I  should  do  injustice  to  my  own  feelinjp,  if  I  did 
not' in  the  outset  declare  to  you  the  deep  feelings  of  gratitude  which  pervade  my 
bosom  at  the  expression  of  your  kindness  which  has  placed  me  at  the  head  of  this 
family  table.  The  committee  of  arrangements  have  put  into  my  hands  a  schedule 
marking  out  what  remains  to  be  done  at  this  family  gathering;  and,  as  the 
respectability  of  all  families  depends  very  much  upon  their  good  order  and  con- 
duct at  at  the  table,  you  are  requested  to  observe  during  the  residue  of  the  cere- 
monies the  strictest  order;  for,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  in  such  a  family  as  this, 
before  the  sun  goes  down  you  will  have  first-rate  speaking.  There  are  some 
bovs  here  that  can  do  that  thing  up  well.  I  see  by  this  arrangement  that  there 
are  to  be  some  introductory  remarks  by  the  President.  I  hardly  know,  my 
brothers  and  sisters,  what  to  say  to  you.  Foreigners  have  said,  that  when  we 
get  together  here  in  this  Yankee  land  we  always  talk  about  ourselves.  Now  I 
36* 


42 G  APPENDIX  I. 

should  like  to  know,  upon  this  occasion,  what  else  can  be  talked  about ;  for  I 
think  it  is  very  bad  policy  for  families  when  they  are  together  to  talk  about 
other  folks!  (Laughter.)  It  is  very  right  for  the  children  when  they  come 
home,  to  talk  about  the  old  home  and  fireside,  and  when  they  cluster  about  the 
old  people,  they  have  a  right  to  talk  of  what  has  taken  place  during  their 
absence.  They  have  a  right  to  inquire  who  is  married,  who  is  dead,  and  who 
is  —  run  away !  if  they  please. 

"  Here  have  come  together,  around  this  family  board,  sons  and  daughters, 
whose  residences  are  scattered  over  the  surface  of  eighteen  of  these  twenty-six 
States.  We  may  well  say  to  ourselves  (and  if  there  are  strangers  here  they  will 
indulge  us  in  saying  so),  that  we  must  be  rather  a  promising  family,  to  have  our 
children  spread  thus  far  and  wide  over  the  four  quarters  of  this  great  land,  and 
gathered  together  again  on  an  occasion  of  this  kind.  We  have  heard,  brothers, 
from  our  friend,  yesterday,  in  sober  prose,  and  from  our  other  friend  in  cheerful 
poetry  — we  have  heard  much  about  the  history  of  our  good  old  mother  Berk- 
shire. They  went  back  to  her  origin  as  a  county,  alluded  to  some  events  in  her 
history,  talked  of  her  loved  and  interesting  children,  spoke  of  her  beautiful 
scenery,  and  of  the  spirit  and  enterprise  of  her  sons  and  daughters,  — and  they 
had  a  right  to  talk  so.  It  was  said  to-day,  that  within  twelve  hours  after  the 
news  of  the  first  act  of  aggression  at  Lexington  reached  this  valley  among  these 
mountains,  the  sons  of  Berkshire  were  on  their  way  to  the  point  of  danger.  That 
is  matter  of  history.  And  it  is  no  less  true,  that  from  that  moment  till  the  sur- 
render of  Cornwallis  at  Yorktown,  there  was  no  day,  no  hour,  no  battle  fought 
of  any  consequence  in  that  great  struggle  for  independence,  where  not  only  Mas- 
sachusetts men  were  not  found,  but  where  there  were  not  found,  also,  Berkshire 
men  mingling  in  the  fight. 

"A  little  incident  relating  to  that  bold  and  fearless  attack  upon  Ticonderoga, 
I  will  name  to  you.  The  Connecticut  Legislature,  or  some  of  the  dauntless  ones 
there,  conceived  the  idea  of  surprising  Ticonderoga;  and  they  sent  up  some  right 
men  through  this  region  of  country  to  hold  consultation  as  to  what  plan  of 
arrangements  should  be  fixed  upon.  They  came  here  to  the  village  of  Pittsfield, 
and  in  an  old  house  where  Willis's  store  now  stands,  and  where  lived  the  mater- 
nal grandfather  of  my  friend  at  this  end  of  the  table  (Dr.  Childs),  they  held  con- 
sultation, and  there  his  grandfather  James  Easton,  John  Brown,  and  other 
faithful  men,  matured  a  plan  of  operations.  Some  were  to  go  to  Jericho,  now 
Hancock,  and  secure  some  choice  spirits;  and  before  the  country  knew  it,  Ticon- 
deroga had  surrendered  at  the  demand  of  Ethan  Allen,  on  an  authority  which 
they  dare  not  question.  Col.  John  Brown  was  a  citizen  of  this  town;  he  went 
to  Quebec,  and  was  there  with  Benedict  Arnold;  while  there,  with  his  sagacious 
eye,  he  pierced  through  the  covering  and  discovered  the  traitor.  Before  he 
returned  home,  some  difficulty  arose  between  them,  and  Brown  published  him  as 
a  coward  and  traitor.  Afterwards  his  true  character  was  developed.  You  know 
the  history  of  John  Brown ;  he  sleeps  at  Stone  Arabie,  where  he  fell  in  that 
murderous  attack  of  the  Indians  upon  the  Mohawk.  And  he  sleeps  not  there 
alone;  many  a  Berkshire  boy  fell  with  him.    From  our  little  sister  town  of 


BERKSHI11E  JUBILEE.  427 

Lanesboro',  three  of  her  sons  perished  in  that  bloody  conflict;  many  a  Berkshire 
mother's  heart  sunk  within  her  at  the  news  of  that  day's  work.  Bennington ! 
they  were  there,  too;  Berkshire  was  alive  when  she  heard  that  her  neighbors  on 
the  north  in  the  Green  Mountain  State  were  in  danger,  and  she  poured  through 
the  gorge  of  the  mountain  beyond  Williamstown  her  brave  sons ;  and  many  of 
them  were  in  the  light,  and  many  Berkshire  men  fell  there.  That  same  Lanes- 
boro' lost  three  worthy  soldiers  in  that  battle.  And  so  it  was,  as  I  said  before, 
they  mingled  in  dl  the  great  fights,  they  flew  to  every  portion  of  the  country 
where  danger  bade  them.  Out  of  the  sixty-nine  thousand  soldiers  which  Massa- 
chusetts furnished  to  that  war  (and  that  was  one  third  of  the  whole  number — 
two  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  —  furnished  by  all  the  States  in  the  American 
Revolution),  this,  our  native  county,  furnished  her  full  proportion.  Berkshire 
men  were  at  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis  at  Yorktown.  I  knew  a  good  old  man, 
—  peace  to  his  ashes  !  —  who  was  through  that  whole  revolutionary  struggle.  He 
was  a  brave  soldier  and  a  true  son  of  Massachusetts  j  and  was  as  honest  and 
just  in  peace  as  he  was  firm  an  1  courageous  in  war.  In  that  dreadful  winter, 
at  Valley  Forge,  he  suffered  with  his  fellow-soldiers.  The  last  time  I  saw  him, 
he  gave  me  the  whole  history  of  the  battle  of  Yorktown.  Fie  was  there  during 
the  preceding  summer,  and  discharged  many  an  importaut  and  confidential  trust 
confided  to  him  by  Lafayette.  And  I  saw  that  good  old  man  meet  in  this  village 
his  brave  and  generous  old  commander.  Fifty  years  had  passed  since  they 
fought  together ;  the  old  man  had  toiled  away  in  his  shop  at  Lanesboro',  —  and 
when  he  heard  that  Lafayette  was  to  be  here,  his  heart  beat  high  with  the  pulsa- 
tions of  youth,  and  he  said  he  must  see  his  general  once  more.  He  came  down 
and  met  him  under  yonder  elm;  and  when  he  mentioned  an  incident  which 
served  to  awaken  old  associations,  they  clasped  each  other  and  wept  like  chil- 
dren. His  name  is  David  Jewett,  —  a  name  which  has  never  gone  abroad  on  the 
wings  of  fame,  but  he  was  one  of  those  who  resembled  more  the  corner-stone 
of  the  building,  which  the  world  never  sees,  than  he  did  some  more  ornamental 
but  less  important  part. 

"And  so  we  went  through  the  Revolution.  "Well,  in  the  last  war  (for  I  am 
now  talking  about  the  soldiers  of  Berkshire),  so  long  as  the  name  of  the  '  Bloody 
Ninth'  shall  endure,  so  long  the  valor  of  the  Berkshire  soldiers  will  be  borne  in 
mind.  We  have  had  an  Indian  war  in  Florida;  and,  oh,  what  a  rich  and  costly 
sacrifice  Berkshire  has  offered  upon  that  altar  I  Our  own  young  Lieutenant 
Center, from  this  Pittsfield,  fell  by  a  bullet  from  a  Seminole  rifle;  and  our  Childs 
spent  some  three  or  four  years  amidst  the  bogs  of  Florida,  and  almost  fatally 
impaired  one  of  the  finest  constitutions  in  the  world.  During  all  his  course  in 
that  most  inglorious  war  he  never  did  an  act  of  unnecessary  cruelty,  or  was 
guilty  of  perfidy  towards  the  hunted  Indians  of  the  Florida  everglades.     .     .    . 

"  Here  all  denominations  of  religion  exist.  "Who  has  ever  seen  among  the  dif- 
ferent persuasions  more  harmony  and  Christian  good-will  prevailing  than  in  this 
very  county  of  Berkshire  ? 

"  I  was  admonished  by  the  committee  that  one  part  of  the  arrangements  is, 
that  speeches  must  be  short.    We  should  make  the  best  speeches  in  the  fewest 


428  APPEXDIX  I. 

words.  My  heart  is  too  full  for  connected  thought  or  studied  speech.  Brothers, 
we  have  come  together  (and  thank  Heaven  that  we  have  lived  to  see  this  happy 
occasion)  to  mingle  our  feelings  and  rekindle  our  affections  at  this  family  altar. 
We  have  come  in  the  fulness  of  our  joy,  to  talk  to  and  of  one  another,  to  inquire 
of  each  other's  welfare,  to  say  how  we  have  fared  during  our  long  separation. 
We  know  that  our  brothers  from  abroad  bring  back  good  tidiugs  of  the  counties 
where  they  dwell;  strangers  have  shown  them  kindness.  Our  hearts  have  been 
made  glad  to  hear  of  their  prosperity  in  every  part  of  this  goodly  land.  The 
South  and  the  West  have  dealt  kindly  with  them.  During  the  time  I  was 
honored  with  a  seat  in  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States,  I  met, 
in  every  Congress,  Berkshire  men.  In  one  House  of  Representatives  there  were 
eight  members  who  were  sons  of  Berkshire.  Wherever  her  sons  are  found, 
whether  in  honor  or  humility,  they  remember  their  good  old  mother  with  affec- 
tion. Well,  here  we  are  once  more  together  in  the  old  homestead,  amidst  all 
the  joyful  and  endearing  associations  which  have  been  so  touchingly  described 
yesterday  and  to-day. 

"In  the  freshness  of  this  gushing  joy,  a  sad  reflection  comes  over  the  mind, 
that  this  glad  jubilee  will  be  the  last  that  many  of  us  will  ever  witness.  Of  the 
present  we  are  secure;  and  for  its  blessings  we  thank  Heaven  around  this  family 
table.  You  have  come,  my  friends,  to  walk  in  the  green  meadows  over  which 
your  boyish  feet  once  ran  with  the  lightness  of  the  roe;  to  ramble  over  the  pas- 
ture where  once  you  lingered  after  the  returning  cows ;  to  look  into  the  old  well 
and  see  its  dripping  bucket,  to  gaze  upon  that  old  apple-tree  where  you  gathered 
the  early  fruit,  to  walk  on  the  banks  of  the  winding  stream  and  stand  by  the 
silver  pool  over  which  the  willow  bent  and  in  which  you  bathed  your  young 
limbs,  to  visit  the  spot  where  with  your  brothers  and  sisters  you  gathered  the 
ripe  berries ;  to  look  upon  that  old  school-house  where  you  learned  to  read  and  to 
spell,  to  write  and  to  cipher,  where  sometimes  you  felt  the  stinging  birch;  to 
reascend  that  well-remembered  rock  upon  which  in  mirth  and  play  you  spent  so 
many  happy  hours,  to  see  if  it  looked  and  appeared  as  it  used  to;  to  walk  once 
more  up  the  aisle  of  that  old  church  where  you  first  heard  the  revered  and  loved 
pastor  preach  and  pray ;  and  you  have  come  to  visit  the  peaceful  graveyard,  to 
walk  among  its  green  mounds  and  drop  the  tear  of  affection  and  friendship  upon 
the  silent  resting-place  of  loved  ones  who  sleep  there.  You  have  come  here  to 
rekindle  at  this  domestic  fireside  the  holy  feelings  of  youth.  To  all  these  we  bid 
you  welcome !  Welcome  to  these  green  valleys  and  lofty  mountains  !  Welcome 
to  this  feast,  to  our  homes,  to  our  hearts  I  Welcome  to  everything !  Once  more 
I  say,  welcome  I 

"  I  give  you  for  a  sentiment, — 

"  The  County  of  Berkshire,  —  She  loves  her  institutions  and  her  beautiful 
scenery,  but,  feeling  the  sentiment  and  borrowing  the  language  of  the  Roman 
mother,  she  points  to  her  children  and  exclaims,  '  These  are  my  jewels.'  " 

The  President  announced  that  a  poem  would  now  be  delivered 
by  Dr.  Holmes,  of  Boston. 


BERKSHIRE  JUBILEE.  429 

Dr.  Oliver  TV.  Holmes  rose  in  his  place,  but  was  greeted  with 
cries  from  various  parts  of  the  audience,  to  come  to  the  centre 
of  the  ground,  so  as  to  be  heard  by  all.     The  President  said,  — 

"  And  I  suggest  to  the  gentleman  to  follow  the  example  of  our  good  friend  who 
preceded  him,  and  get  upon  the  table,  which  is  an  advancement  upon  former 
feasts,  where  the  tendency  was,  rather,  to  get  under  the  table.    (Cheers.)  " 

Dr.  Holmes  accordingly  took  the  table,  and  requested  to  be 
allowed,  before  he  opened  the  very  brief  paper  in  his  hand,  to 
advise  his  friends  of  the  reason  why  he  had  found  himself 
there  :  — 

"It  shall  be  short,"  said^e;  "but  inasmuch  as  the  company  express  willing- 
ness to  hear  historical  incidents,  any  little  incident  which  shall  connect  me  with 
those  to  whom  I  cannot  claim  to  be  a  brother,  seems  to  be  fairly  brought  forward. 
I  will  take  the  liberty  to  refer  to  one.  One  of  my  earliest  recollections  is  of  an 
annual  pilgrimage  made  by  my  parents  to  the  west.  The  young  horse  was 
brought  up,  fatted  by  a  week's  rest  and  high  feeding,  prancing  and  caracoling  to 
the  door.  It  came  to  the  corner,  and  was  soon  over  the  western  hills.  He  was 
gone  a  fortnight;  and  one  afternoon  —  it  always  seemed  to  me  it  was  a  sunny 
afternoon — we  saw  an  equipage  crawling  from  the  west  towards  the  old  home- 
stead,—  the  young  horse,  who  sat  out  fat  and  prancing,  worn  thin  and  reduced  by  a 
long  journey,  the  chaise  covered  with  dust,  and  all  speaking  of  a  terrible  crusade, 
a  formidable  pilgrimage.  Winter-evening  stories  told  me  where  —  to  Berkshire, 
to  the  borders  of  New  York,  to  the  old  domain,  owned  so  long  that  there  seemed 
a  kind  of  hereditary  love  for  it.  Many  years  passed  away,  and  I  travelled  down 
the  beautiful  Rhine,  —  I  wished  to  see  the  equally  beautiful  Hudson.  I  found 
myself  at  Albany ;  a  few  hours'  ride  brought  me  to  Pittsfield,  and  I  went  to  the 
little  spot,  the  scene  of  this  pilgrimage,  —  a  mansion,  —  and  found  it  surrounded 
by  a  beautiful  meadow,  through  which  the  winding  river  made  its  course  in  ten 
thousand  fantastic  curves ;  the  mountains  reared  their  heads  around  it,  the  blue 
air,  which  makes  our  city  pale  cheeks  again  to  deepen  with  the  hue  of  health, 
coursing  about  it  pure  and  free.  I  recognized  it  as  the  scene  of  the  annual  pil- 
grimage.   Since  that  I  have  made  an  annual  visit  to  it. 

"  In  1735,  Hon.  Jacob  Wendell,  my  grandfather  in  the  maternal  line,  bought  a 
township  not  then  laid  out, — the  township  of  Pontoosuc,  —  and  that  little  spot 
which  we  still  hold  is  the  relic  of  twenty-four  thousand  acres  of  baronial  territory. 
When  I  say  this,  no  feeling  which  can  be  the  subject  of  ridicule  animates  my 
bosom.  I  know,  too  well,  that  the  hills  and  rocks  outlast  our  families;  I  know 
we  fall  upon  the  places  we  claim  as  the  leaves  of  the  forest  fall,  and  as  passed 
the  soil  from  the  hands  of  the  original  occupants  into  the  hands  of  my  immediate 
ancestors,  I  know  it  must  pass  from  me  and  mine  ;  and  yet  with  pleasure  and 
pride  I  feel  I  can  take  every  inhabitant  by  the  hand  and  say,  if  I  am  not  a  son, 


430  APPEXDIX  I. 

or  a  grandson,  or  even  a  nephew  of  that  fair  county,  at  least  I  am  allied  to  it  by 
an  hereditary  relation.  But  I  have  no  right  to  indulge  in  sentimental  remarks." 
(Cries  of"  Go  on,  go  on.") 

Dr.  Holmes  read  the  poem,  as  follows,  which  was  received 
with  continued  and  hearty  cheers  :  — 

"  Come  back  to  your  mother,  ye  children,  for  shame, 
Who  have  wandered,  like  truants,  for  riches  or  fame  ! 
With  a  smile  on  her  face  and  a  sprig  on  her  cap, 
She  calls  you  to  feast  from  her  bountiful  lap. 

"  Come  out  from  your  alleys,  your  courts,  and  your  lanes, 
And  breathe,  like  young  eagles,  the  air  of  our  plains ; 
Take  a  whiff  from  our  fields,  and  your  excellent  wives 
Will  declare  it's  all  nonsense  insuring  your  lives. 

"  Come  you  of  the  law,  who  can  talk,  if  you  please, 
Till  the  man  in  the  moon  will  allow  it's  a  cheese, 
And  leave  '  the  old  lady,  that  never  tells  lies,' 
To  sleep  with  her  handkerchief  over  her  eyes. 

"Ye  healers  of  men,  for  a  moment  decline 

Your  feats  in  the  rhubarb  and  ipecac  line ; 

While  you  shut  up  your  turnpike,  your  neighbors  can  go 

The  old  roundabout  road  to  the  regions  below. 

"  You  clerk,  on  whose  ears  are  a  couple  of  pens, 
And  whose  head  is  an  ant-hill  of  units  and  tens; 
Though  Plato  denies  you,  we  welcome  you  still, 
As  a  featherless  biped,  in  spite  of  your  quill. 

"  Poor  drudge  of  the  city,  how  happy  he  feels 

With  the  burs  on  his  legs  and  the  grass  at  his  heels  ; 

No  dodger  behind,  his  bandanas  to  share,  — 

No  constable  grumbling,  '  You  mustn't  walk  there  I > 

"  In  yonder  green  meadow,  to  memory  dear, 

He  slaps  a  mosquito  and  brushes  a  tear; 

The  dew-drops  hang  round  him,  on  blossoms  and  shoots, — 

He  breathes  but  one  sigh,  for  his  youth  and  his  boots. 

"  There  stands  the  old  school-house,  hard  by  the  old  church; 
That  tree  at  its  side  had  the  flavor  of  birch ; 
Oh,  sweet  were  the  days  of  his  juvenile  tricks, 
Though  the  prairie  of  youth  had  so  many  '  bis  Ucks.' 


B  Ell  KS  HIRE  JUBILEE.  431 

"  By  the  side  of  yon  river  he  weeps  and  he  slumps,  — 
The  boots  filled  with  water,  as  if  they  were  pumps ; 
Till,  sated  with  rapture,  he  steals  to  his  bed, 
With  a  glow  in  his  heart  and  a  cold  in  his  head. 

"  'Tis  past  —  he  is  dreaming  —  I  see  him  again; 
His  ledger  returns  as  by  legerdemain; 
His  n^ck-cloth  is  damp,  with  an  easterly  flaw, 
And  he  holds  in  his  fingers  an  omnibus  straw. 

"  He  dreams  the  shrill  gust  is  a  blossomy  gale, 
That  the  straw  is  a  rose  from  his  dear  native  vale; 
And  murmurs,  unconscious  of  space  and  of  time, 
'A  1,  extra-super;  ah,  isn't  it  prime  I ' 

"  Oh,  what  are  the  prizes  we  perish  to  win 
To  the  first  little  '  shiner '  we  caught  with  a  pin ! 
No  soil  upon  earth  is  as  dear  to  our  eyes 
As  the  soil  we  first  stirred  in  terrestrial  pies  ! 

"  Then  come  from  all  parties,  and  parts,  to  our  feast, 
Though  not  at  the  •  Astor,'  we'll  give  you  at  least 
A  bite  at  an  apple,  a  seat  on  the  grass, 
And  the  best  of  cold  —  water  —  at  nothing  a  glass." 

Passing  over  all  the  rest  of  the  dinner  speeches,  and  more 
prominent  exercises  of  this  festival,  this  Appendix  will  be  appro- 
priately closed  with,  — 

THE  LAST  CHAPTER  OF  THE  CHRONICLES  OF  THE  BERKSHIRE 

JUBILEE. 

BY   CATHARINE   M.    SEDGWICK. 

Now  George,  of  the  tribe  of  Briggs,  being  of  a  goodly  stature,  and,  moreover, 
having  an  upright  mind  and  a  pleasant  speech,  gained  the  hearts  of  his 
brethren. 

And  the  dwellers  in  Massachusetts  chose  him  to  be  their  head  and  chief  ruler. 
And  George  dwelt  in  the  goodly  land  of  Berkshire,  and  his  dwelling  was  in  that 
upper  valley  of  the  Housatonic  which  our  fathers  bought  of  the  red  men,  and 
called  it  Pittsfield. 

Now  in  the  first  year  of  the  magistracy  of  George,  a  good  spirit  entered  into 
the  hearts  of  the  sons  of  Berkshire,  both  of  those  who  dwelt  in  the  homes  of 
their  fathers,  and  of  those  who  were  dispersed  abroad. 

And  to  these  last  came  visions  and  dreams,  and  the  homes  of  their  childhood 


432  APPEXDIX  I. 

rose  before  them,  and  they  saw  in  vision  the  green  and  dewy  hills  of  Berkshire, 
with  their  maple  groves,  and  the  wide  shadowing  elm  which  hath  no  equal  for 
beauty  and  gracefulness  among  all  the  trees  that  the  Lord  hath  made ;  and  also 
the  tirs  and  the  pines  of  their  mountain-tops ;  and  the  smiling  valleys  standing 
thick  with  corn,  and  the  pasture  and  the  orchard,  and  the  skating  and  the  coast 
ing-ground. 

And  there  appeared  before  them  in  vision,  also,  the  fair  daughters  of  their 
people,  even  as  they  had  seen  them  in  the  freshness  and  the  beauty  of  their 
early  days. 

And  the  ripple  of  the  lakes  sparkling  in  their  valleys,  and  the  gushing  of  the 
streams  from  their  hills  was  in  their  ears,  like  far-off  music. 

And  their  kindred  who  had  been  gathered  to  their  fathers,  the  mother  who 
had  rocked  their  cradle,  and  he  who  had  toiled  for  their  youth,  and  brothers  and 
sisters  and  friends,  rose  before  them,  and  beckoned  them  to  the  land  in  which 
they  were  born. 

And  their  hearts  were  faint  within  them,  till  a  goodly  purpose  was  breathed 
into  them  and  they  spake  with  one  voice,  and  said,  "  Hath  not  the  Lord  given 
us  rest  on  every  side ?  Now  we  will  proclaim  a  jubilee!  we  will  go  up  to  our 
Jerusalem !  We  will  worship  in  the  temples  of  our  fathers  !  We  will  kiss  the 
sod  that  covers  the  graves  of  our  kindred,  and  we  will  sit  ourselves  down  in  the 
old  places  where  their  shadows  will  pass  before  us  ! 

"And  we  will  rejoice  and  make  merry  with  our  brethren;  and  Memory  and 
Hope  shall  be  our  pleasant  ministers.  And  we  will  lay  our  hearts  together  and 
stir  up  the  mouldering  embers  of  old  friendships  till  the  tire  burns  within  us,  and 
this,  even  this  sacred  fire  will  we  transmit  to  our  children's  children." 

And  even  as  they  said,  so  did  they;  and  in  the  summer  solstice  with  one  heart 
and  one  mind  they  came  together. 

The  pilgrims  from  afar  and  the  sojourners  at  home.  Even  from  the  valley  of 
the  Mississippi  came  they ;  and  from  the  yet  farther  country  of  the  Missouri  — 
and  from  the  land  of  the  sun,  even  from  the  south  land,  and  from  all  the  goodly 
lands  roundabout  Massachusetts. 

And  strangers  who  honored  them,  and  whom  they  honored,  also  came;  not 
intermeddling  with  their  joy,  but  greatly  augmenting  the  sum  thereof. 

And  they  gathered  together  a  multitude  of  people,  old  men  and  elder  women, 
young  men  and  fair  young  maidens  and  much  children  —  and  a  very  great  com- 
pany were  they. 

They  came  not,  like  the  Queen  of  Sheba,  "bearing  spices,  and  gold  in  abun- 
dance, and  precious  stones,"  but,  instead  of  these,  sound  minds  well  instructed, 
hearts  of  gold,  loyalty  to  the  land  of  their  fathers,  imperishable  friendships, 
religious  faith  —  all  pearls  of  great  price. 

And  a  great  heart  was  in  the  people  of  Pittsfield,  and  they  opened  the  doors  of 
their  pleasant  dwellings  and  bade  their  brethren  enter  therein.  And  they  spread 
fine  linen  on  their  beds,  and  they  covered  their  tables  with  the  fat  of  the  land; 
for  the  Lord  had  greatly  blessed  the  people  of  Pittsfield. 


o  o 


BERKSHIRE  JUBILEE.  43 

And  they  said  to  all  their  brethren,  "  Come  now  and  enter  in,  and  freely  take 
of  our  abundance,  for,  lo  !  have  we  not  spread  our  tables  for  you;  and  hath  not 
the  angel  of  sleep  dressed  our  beds,  that  our  brethren  may  sleep  therein  ?  " 

And  the  faces  of  their  brethren  shone  and  they  entered  in;  aud  they  said,  "  It 
was  a  true  report  we  heard  of  thee ;  thy  land  doth  excel,  and  thou  hast  greatly 
increased  the  riches  and  the  beauty  thereof.  Corn  aboundeth  where,  in  the  time 
of  our  fathers,  the  ground  Avas  barren.  Thy  flocks  aud  thy  herds  are  multiplied. 
Many  goodly  dwei'ings,  such  as  were  not  aforetime,  hast  thou  set  up.  Thou 
hast  enlarged  the  bounds  of  thy  fruitful  fields,  and  thou  hast  gemmed  thy  gar- 
dens with  flowers.  Walks  hast  thou  laid  out  and  planted  them,  and  thou  hast 
done  well  to  cherish  that  stately  elm,  the  monument  of  the  past,  the  last  relic  of 
the  forests  where  the  red  men  hunted. 

"  And  moreover,  here  do  we  behold  a  wonder  such  as  Solomon  in  all  his  wisdom 
conceived  not  of,  when  he  said,  '  There  is  nothing  new  under  the  sun.'  Here, 
in  this  land,  the  wilderness  to  which  our  fathers  came  but  as  yesterday,  have  ye 
builded  a  work  which  was  not  done,  nay,  nor  was  it  so  much  as  conceived  of,  by 
the  cunning  artificers  of  the  East;  nor  by  the  many-handed  labor  of  Egypt,  nor 
by  the  art  of  Greece,  —  and  even  now  is  the  report  of  its  ponderous  engines  and 
passing  multitudes  in  our  ear  I  " 

And  many  words  were  spoken,  cheering  the  heart  and  lighting  up  the  counte- 
nance. 

And  all  the  people  went  up  together  into  the  temple  of  the  Lord.  And  there 
spake  unto  them  Mark,  the  son  of  Archibald,  and  this  was  the  same  Archibald, 
albeit  a  tiller  of  the  ground,  honored  among  his  brethren  of  the  lower  valley,  for 
he  loved  much,  and  was  an  honest  man,  but  now  he  was  gathered  to  his  fathers, 
and  Mark  his  son  was  set  up  to  be  a  light  in  the  land  and  an  instructor  of  the 
young  men.  And  his  brethren  had  chosen  him  to  speak  unto  them,  he  being  of 
an  excellent  spirit  and  knowledge  and  understanding,  and  noted  for  showing  of 
hard  sentences  and  dissolving  of  doubts.  And  he  spake  wisely  and  he  greatly 
pleased  his  brethren  :  are  not  his  words  written  in  this  Book  of  the  Jubilee  ? 

And  William,  the  son  of  that  priest  of  the  valiant  heart,  who  in  the  days  of  the 
oppression  of  the  kings,  ministered  unto  the  people  of  Pittsfield,  he  also  spake 
unto  his  brethren. 

And  Joshua,  of  the  tribe  of  Spencer,  a  wise  man  and  learned  in  the  law,  spake 
to  them.  And  he  brought  forth  to  them  from  their  old  chronicles  lost  and  for- 
gotten treasures,  and  he  pleased  them  with  the  sayings  and  doings  of  their 
fathers. 

And  a"  goodly  tent  was  spread,  and  they  did  eat  together,  both  men  and  women, 
with  great  gladness,  but  they  drank  not  save  of  the  pure  water  of  their  hill- 
country,  for  George,  their  ruler,  said  unto  them,  "  Touch  not  the  wine-cup,  for 
there  be  of  our  brethren  who  have  perverted  this  good  gift,  and  drunk  of  it  to 
their  own  destruction,  and  thereby  causing  us  shame,  and  also  much  sorrow,— 
therefore  we  will  put  away  this  evil  from  among  us." 

And  they  listened  to  the  voice  of  their  ruler,  for  they  loved  him,  and  they  did 
the  thing  he  desired. 
37 


434  APPENDIX  I. 

And  now  all  that  Joshua  spake,  and  also  the  sayings  of  the  wise  and  the  witty 
men,  and  the  speech  of  the  eloquent,  and  the  salutation  of  the  stranger,  and  the 
word  spoken  by  the  simple  and  loving  heart,  and  the  song  sung  to  the  stringed 
instruments,  behold  they  are  written  in  this  Book  of  the  Jubilee  ! 

Now  the  time  of  separation  came,  and  they  blessed  the  Lord  for  that  he  had 
greatly  blessed  the  land  of  their  fathers. 

And  a  spirit  of  meditation  fell  upon  them,  and  they  said  in  their  hearts,  "  Our 
days  on  the  earth  are  a  shadow  and  there  is  none  abiding. 

"One  generation  appeareth  and  passeth  away  and  another  cometh,  but  the 
good  that  we  do,  that  shall  remain. 

"  Have  we  not  this  day  listened  to  the  words  of  Mark  and  Joshua,  and  have  we 
not  delighted  to  honor  George,  whom  our  brethren  have  set  up  to  be  a  ruler  over 
us  ?  Whence  come  they  forth  —  Mark,  Joshua,  and  George  ?  Not  from  the  rich 
nor  the  learned ;  lo,  did  not  their  fathers  labor  among  us  even  with  their  hand?  ? 
Now,  seeing  this  is  the  order  of  our  land,  shall  we  not  call  on  the  son  of  the 
humble  man  to  be  diligent,  —  shall  we  not  multiply  for  him  instruction,  and  open 
to  him  the  fountains  of  knowledge,  and  remove  far  from  him  vanity  and  cor- 
ruption ? 

"  We  pass  away,  but  our  hills  and  our  valleys  they  remain ;  in  beauty  hath  the 
Lord  made  them.  His  creations  are  fair  to  look  upon,  —  shall  not  the  work  of 
our  hands  be  in  harmony  with  the  Lord's  work  ? 

"  Therefore,  where  the  hand  of  the  feller  has  felled  the  goodly  trees,  we  will 
plant  and  water,  and  the  Lord  will  surely  give  us  increase. 

"  And  when  we  build  our  temples,  whether  they  be  for  the  worship  of  the  Lord 
our  God,  or  for  the  instruction  of  our  young  men  and  maidens,  or  for  the  meet- 
ing of  the  rulers  and  judges  of  our  land,  we  will  seek  a  goodly  pattern  therefor  of 
men  cunning  in  art. 

"  And  also  for  the  houses  in  which  we  dwell,  and  the  barns,  and  whatever  is 
builded  with  men's  hands  will  we  ask  a  pattern  of  men  skilled  in  these  matters, 
lest,  following  the  devices  and  desires  of  the  ignorant,  we  mar  and  burden  the 
lovely  land  the  Lord  hath  given  us. 

"  And  our  bridges,  and  our  fences  also,  shall  be  pleasant  to  the  eye,  and  order 
and  neatness  shall  be  manifested  about  our  habitations ;  and  in  all  these  things 
will  we  heed  the  warning  which  Benjamin,  of  the  tribe  of  Franklin,  hath  given 
us,  in  the  parable  of  the  '  speckled  axe,'  thereby  warning  us  not  to  sit  down 
content  with  imperfection. 

"  And  we  will  enlarge  our  gardens  and  plant  therein  the  fruits  and  flowers  of 
divers  countries;  and  our  daughters  shall  tend  them,  as  Eve  dressed  the  "garden 
in  the  days  of  her  innocency. 

"  And  also  we  will  not  forget  our  burial-places  where  our  kindred  lie,  and  where 
we  shall  soon  be  gathered  among  them.  We  will  extend  the  borders  thereof. 
We  will  plant  around  them  trees  and  fashion  walks,  that  our  young  men  aud 
maidens  may  love  to  come  thither  to  think  on  their  fathers.  And  there  shall 
be  seats  tLieie,for  the  old  man  at  noon-tide  to  sit  under  the  cool  shade  and  medi- 


FUXERAL  SERMON.  435 

tate  on  the  life  and  immortality  which  the  Lord  our  Saviour  hath  brought  to 
light 

"  And,  moreover,  we  will  plant  flowers  there,  that  our  little  children  may  come 
to  pluck  them,  and  the  soft  music  of  their  feet  may  be  on  the  sod  that  covers  our 
graves." 

And  this  good  and  much  more  did  they  purpose  to  the  land  they  loved,  even  the 
pleasant  land  of  Berkshire. 

And  when  the  Lour  of  parting  came,  the  bands  of  their  early  love  were  strait- 
ened.   And  they  said  with  one  accord,   "  Henceforth  and  forever  we 

ARE  BRETHREN  I" 


APPENDIX    II. 
FUNERAL   SERMON. 

BY  REV.   LEMUEL    PORTER,    D.    D. 

"  Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God."—  Psalm  xlvi.  10. 

Soox  after  the  deceased  received  his  fatal  wound,  he  wrote 
for  his  afflicted  wife  these  words,  "It  has  come;  ' Be  still,  and 
know  that  I  am  God.''  "  He  recognized  the  solemn  truth,  that  he 
was  soon  to  leave  this  world  ;  and  he  would  sustain  his  family 
by  considerations  drawn  from  the  Divine  character.  He  be- 
lieved that  God  is  infinitely  wise ;  hence,  that  mistakes  and  acci- 
dents are  impossible  under  His  administration.  We  are  to  be 
still,  in  a  spirit  of  Christian  submission,  when  God's  hand  is  on 
us,  lest  we  arraign  sujDreme  wisdom.  He  believed  that  God  is 
infinitely  good,  even  when  apparently  severe,  chastening  those 
whom  He  loves ;  therefore  we  should  be  perfectly  resigned  to 
His  discipline.  He  believed  God  is  a  sovereign,  rightfully  dealing 
with  men,  according  to  his  good  pleasure  ;  therefore  it  becomes 
the  bereaved  to  say,  "The  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  has  taken 
away ;  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord.11  He  believed  in  God's 
Providence,  —  that  He  acts  in  human  affairs  by  agencies  which 
are  often  invisible,  but  closely  connected  and  arranged  to  affect 
His  purposes.     We  are  to  be  still,  though  some  afflictive  event 


436  APPENDIX  II. 

discloses  that  we  were  links  in  the  invisible  chain  that  caused  it. 
He  believed  in  Christ,  as  the  only  Saviour  of  sinners,  having 
heavenly  glories  in  reserve  for  believers;  and  that  death  is  the 
passport  to  his  presence.  It  becomes  us,  then,  to  be  still,  when 
dear  Christian  friends  die,  for  the  road  to  heaven  passes  througn 
the  tomb.  He  trusted,  with  all  his  heart,  in  that  character 
whose  wisdom,  goodness,  sovereignty,  and  Providence  are  so 
exquisitely  blended.  His  first  impulse  was  to  send  those  he 
loved  to  his  source  of  strength.  He  knew  that  philosophy  was 
a  vain  helper.  Its  highest  lesson  is,  that  repining  is  useless.  It 
cannot  open  the  eyes  of  the  dead,  nor  vitalize  the  heart  that  has 
ceased  to  beat  forever.  Philosophy  is  an  opiate  ;  trust  in  God  is 
a  cordial.  The  lacerated  soul  cannot  find  peace  in  the  stoic's 
creed  or  in  the  Indian's  fortitude.  It  comes  only  from  the  hand 
that  smites  us.  Christian  submission  is  consistent  with  a  full 
knowledge  of  our  loss,  and  with  such  tears  as  Jesus  shed. 
When  God  says  to  a  mourner,  "Be  still,"  he  means,  "Be  not 
discouraged,  indulge  in  no  murmurs."  When  he  says,  "Know 
that  lam  God,"  he  means,  "Confide  in  me,  —  I  will  arrange 
this  trial  for  your  good."  The  Christian  sees  in  this  command 
no  tyranny  ;  it  is  the  authority  of  love. 

We  need  faith  in  God  to-day,  for  we  are  all  bereaved.  While 
George  N.  Briggs  lived,  every  one  felt  he  had  a  friend.  That 
friend  has  been  summoned  above.  As  the  tidings  of  his  death 
still  spread,  in  widening  circles,  multitudes  exclaim,  "  Is  that 
good  man  dead?  shall  we  see  him  no  more?  shall  we  never 
hear  his  voice  again  ?  "  The  poor  have  lost  a  benefactor  ;  his 
charities  distilled  like  the  dew,  silently,  beneficently.  The  err- 
ing found  in  him  a  kind  adviser.  The  young  regarded  him  as  a 
father.  Who  ever  had  a  better  neighbor  ?  What  citizen  was 
ever  more  beloved  ?  In  the  councils  of  our  nation,  was  not  his 
influence  as  a  statesman  and  a  patriot  most  salutary  ?  As  the 
Chief  Magistrate  of  this  Commonwealth,  who  was  his  superior? 
As  judge,  who  feared  to  trust  a  righteous  cause  to  his  decision? 
He  passed  the  ordeal  of  public  life  with  honor,  thus  proving 
there  is  a  straight  path  through  the  labyrinth  of  politics.    Honors 


FUNERAL  SERMON.  437 

and  responsibilities  sought  him,  not  he  them.  It  might  be  chis- 
elled on  his  monument,  "An  honest  statesman,"  and  no  man 
would  wish  to  erase  the  inscription.  God  spared  him  nearly 
sixty-six  years,  to  the  serene  evening  of  his  life.  He  had  earned 
the  right  to  retire  to  the  bosom  of  his  family  and  to  his  home  in 
the  church.  Yet  though  he  was  retired  from  public  service,  he 
continued  doing  good.  Twelve  years  in  Congress,  seven  years 
Governor  of  Massachusetts,  three  years  judge,  he  was  not  weary 
of  toil.  At  the  time  of  his  decease  he  was  president  of  several 
important  organizations,  over  which  he  presided  with  great 
acceptance.  Among  them,  the  American  Tract  Society,  Bos- 
ton, the  Baptist  Foreign  Missionary  Union,  the  National  Tem- 
perance Alliance,  the  State  Sabbath  School  Union,  and  the 
Berkshire  Insurance  Company.  He  was  a  trustee  of  several 
colleges.  He  had  recently  been  appointed  umpire  in  a  most 
important  case,  pending  between  our  Government  and  that  of 
New  Grenada.  He  declined  many  high  positions ;  among  them, 
that  of  Secretary  of  the  American  Sunday  School  Union,  Secre- 
tary to  the  American  and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  and  Chancellor 
of  the  Madison  University,  New  York.  His  death  has  created 
many  a  void.  Forty  years  he  was  the  firm  and  eloquent  advo- 
cate of  temperance.  At  Washington,  at  Boston,  —  everywhere 
he  was  consistent.  "  Total  abstinence  from  all  that  can  intoxicate 
as  a  beverage,"  was  his  motto  and  his  practice.  A  gentleman 
who  was  strictly  temperate,  asked  him,  one  day,  "  What  is  your 
course  when  wine  is  offered  you  here,  in  fashionable  circles,  in 
the  capital  ?  "  "I  decline  it,"  said  he,  "  and  drink  water."  "  I 
just  put  the  glass  to  my  lips,"  said  the  gentleman,  "  and  t!im  set 
it  down,  without  tasting  the  wine."  "  But,"  replied  this  inflex- 
ibly-honest, consistent,  and  morally  courageous  man,  "  I  decline 
it  openly,  for  example's  sake." 

He  had  a  true  American  love  of  liberty.  He  believed  that  the 
normal  condition  of  all  men  was  freedom,  and  saw  no  good 
reason  for  excepting  the  colored  race.  His  benevolence  and 
sense  of  justice  made  him  long  for  the  termination  of  slavery. 
He  understood  the  difficulties  of  emancipation  better  than  most 

37* 


438  APPENDIX  II. 

men.  He  was  honest  in  upholding'  the  South  in  all  their  consti- 
tutional rights ;  but  he  believed  that  God  would  not  suffer  an 
institution  so  opposed  to  the  spirit  of  our  Government,  so  un- 
christian, so  detrimental  to  the  republic,  so  compact  with  inex- 
pressible evils,  always  to  continue.  If  all  men  were  like  George 
N.  Briggs,  drunkards  and  slaves  would  be  as  impossible  here  as 
in  heaven. 

He  was  a  firm  friend  of  popular  education,  and  often  lectured 
upon  it.  How  he  extolled  the  Holy  Bible  in  those  lectures ! 
How  he  quoted  its  sacred  contents !  how  he  affirmed  that  it 
afforded  the  best  discipline  for  the  mind,  and  the  best  culture  for 
the  heart  ;  that  it  created  a  correct  taste,  and  laid  the  foundation 
of  excellence  —  in  character  !  Who  can  remember  anv  address 
of  his,  whether  to  legislators,  to  judges  and  jurors,  to  educators, 
to  patriots,  to  Sunday-school  scholars,  to  Christians,  which  was 
not  enriched  by  quotations  from  the  book  of  God.  He  was  an 
extemporaneous  speaker ;  hence,  to  our  great  regret,  very  few 
of  his  speeches  are  preserved.  I  need  not  say  that  such  a  man 
as  Governor  Briggs  was  a  lover  of  his  country.  The  Govern- 
ment is  sure  of  support  from  such  men.  It  had  his  prayers,  his 
gifts,  his  influence,  and  he  freely  gave  to  it  his  son.  These 
walls  still  echo 1  with  his  patriotic  eloquence  on  a  recent  occasion. 

There  are  two  places  which  he  loved,  above  all  others,  —  his 
home  and  the  church  of  Christ.  I  hardly  dare  speak  of  his 
home.  Can  I  allude  to  him  as  the  husband  and  father  and 
grandfather  ?  Can  I  open  his  doors  and  show  you  how  his  pres- 
ence shed  happiness  on  the  domestic  circle  ?  Can  I  go  with  you 
from  room  to  room,  and  point  you  to  the  numerous  tokens  of  re- 
gard, the  gifts  of  friends  from  both  sides  of  the  ocean  ?  Can  I 
lead  you  to  the  family  altar  at  which  he  worshipped  ?  Ah,  no  ! 
Xot  to-day.  Bereaved  friends,  you  all  profess  to  be  Christians. 
God  has  sustained  you  by  his  grace.  Oh,  submit  cheerfully  to 
His  will !  This  precious  book  which  your  husband  and  father 
loved,  is  full  of  promises.     "  Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God.*1 

l  Address  to  "  Allen  Guards." 


FUNERAL   SERMON.  439 

How  shall  I  speak  of  his  bereaved  church?  There  is  his  pew 
from  which  he  was  seldom  absent.  Tliere  is  the  place  where  he 
taught  in  the  Sabbath  school.  Here  is  the  place  where  he  so 
often  stood  and  advocated  some  good  cause.  Here  is  the  table 
from  which,  for  many  years  he  reverently  received  the  com- 
munion. Below  are  the  rooms  where  he  delighted  to  meet  his 
brethren  for  prayer  and  praise.  Here  are  the  walls  to  whose 
erection  he  so  liberally  contributed.  Who,  of  us  can  ever  forget 
his  words  at  our  last  church  meeting,  preparatory  to  com- 
munion ?  Oh,  how  melting  !  how  heavenly  !  "  It  is  well,"  said 
he,  "to  be  sound  in  gospel  doctrines,  but  oh,  it  is  better  to  have 
the  Spirit  of  Christ."  Can  it  be,  dear  brethren,  that  he  will 
walk  those  aisles  no  more  ?  Can  it  be  that  his  noble  form  and 
mild  blue  eye  and  benevolent  face  will  not  be  seen  again  in  this 
sanctuary?  Can  it  be,  we  shall  never  hear  his  voice  again? 
Can  it  be  that  his  pastor,  who  has  leaned  on  him  eleven  years, 
shall  have  his  support  no  more  ?  Let  us  be  still,  for  the  Lord  — 
he  is  God. 

Governor  Briggs  loved  his  home,  but  he  made  many  homes 
happy.  He  loved  his  church,  but  he  was  the  friend  and  brother 
of  Christians  in  all  churches.  His  political  and  Christian  opinions 
were  very  clear  and  settled,  but  all  men  felt,  in  his  presence, 
that  patriotism  rose  above  party,  and  Christianity  above  church. 
His  work  is  done.  He  has  gone  to  his  reward,  but  his  influence 
will  live,  while  the  memory  of  the  just  is  precious. 

I  have  tried  to  avoid  eulogy,  for  I  know  it  is  opposed  to  the 
simplicity  and  humility  of  his  character.  Everything  has  been 
plain  at  his  funeral,  for  he  was  a  plain,  though  great  and  good 
man.  I  know  that  instead  of  praise  for  him,  he  would  have  this 
occasion  lead  our  thoughts  to  Christ.  He  always  wanted  the 
crown  on  the  Saviour's  head. 

In  some  circles  he  will  be  remembered  but  as  a  statesman,  in 
others  as  a  philanthropist.  Here,  he  will  be  remembered  but  as 
a  Christian.  He  had  long  been  ripening  for  heaven,  and  for 
two  years  past  the  process  had  been  rapid.  He  united  with  the 
church  when  only  twelve  years  old,  and  has  been  fifty-four  years 


440  APPENDIX  II. 

a  growing  Christian.  Brethren,  he  is  with  Christ,  and  we  have 
his  work  to  do  as  well  as  ours.  On  whom  shall  his  mantle  fall  ? 
It  is  interesting  to  learn  how  a  man  like  Governor  Briggs  ap- 
proached the  eternal  world.  He  did  not  converse  much,  after 
his  wound.  He  wrote  upon  a  slate,  and  many  of  these  brief 
writings  have  been  copied,  for  preservation.  It  is  gratifying  to 
know,  that  the  fear  of  death,  which  was  a  constitutional  pecul- 
iarity of  his,  was  completely  removed.  ';  It  has  come.  Be  still, 
and  know  that  I  am  God,"  were  his  calm  words  to  his  wife.  To 
his  son-in-law,  —  "I  thought  that  dav  I  should  be  in  eternitv  in 
one  minute.  I  think  I  was  perfectly  calm.''  Immediately  after 
reaching  his  bed,  he  said  to  his  son,  "  Strange  I  should  meet  the 
fate  of  the  battle-field  —  in  this  quiet  place.  It  is  all  right." 
That  son  knelt  by  him  and  prayed.  The  father  folded  his  hands 
on  his  breast  with  a  most  devout  and  placid  expression  of  coun- 
tenance. His  soul  was  in  peace.  His  love  for  his  family  was 
frequently  expressed.  "  How  much  I  trouble  you  ! "  "Howl 
love  vou  all!"  "I  have  not  seen  little  George  and  Marv  and 
Xelly,"  his  grandchildren.  To  his  physician  he  said,  "I  am 
afraid  vou  are  going  to  cure  me."  After  a  moment's  thought- 
fulness  he  added,  "  What  a  night  that  was,  doctor!"  "  Your 
face  told  the  story."  "  God  scourged  me,  and  then  He  bound  up 
the  wound."  How  good  He  is  !  We  all  know  his  Christian  hu- 
mility. "  My  life,"  said  he,  "  seems  useless.  I  have  done  noth- 
ing—  nothing!  '"  His  submission  to  God's  will,  and  his  longing 
for  heaven,  were  constantly  manifested.  "Why  do  I  linger 
here  ?  it  is  to  prepare  me."  "Joy  and  calm  below,  but  oh,  how 
calm  and  quiet  and  good  above  ! "  "  Oh,  that  this  poor,  frail,  un- 
worthy one  were  there  !  "  A  dear  friend  stood  by  his  bed.  His 
son  said,  "you  have  no  better  friend  than  this."  "I  have  one 
better  friend,"  he  said,  looking  up.  To  his  daughter  he  said, 
"Oh,  how  I  want  to  be  in  heaven!"  The  day  but  one  before 
his  death  he  said  to  his  son,  "  I  am  at  the  lowest  point  of  ani- 
mal existence.  I  don't  see  how  I  can  be  saved  from  dving." 
"I  have  no  wish  for  it;  God  and  Christ  are  my  all."  "I  love 
you."     "Do  what  you  think  best.      Leave  all  to  God!    God! 


FUNERAL   SERMON.  441 

God  ! "  On  Wednesday  evening  he  sank  into  sleep.  On  Thurs- 
day morning  his  spirit  gently  ascended  to  his  Saviour  and  his 
home. 


l  Honored  and  loved  he  passed  away, 
As  sinks  a  summer's  day  to  rest. 
The  brightest  when  the  radiant  clouds 
Of  silent  evening,  gem  the  west. 

'Twas  not  when  youth's  bright  morning  beams 
With  glowing  crimson  flushed  the  sky, 

But  crowned  with  glory  and  with  years, 
God  called  him  to  his  home  on  high. 

And  calm  as  evening's  jewelled  zone, 
The  valley  dark,  he  fearless  trod; 

His  words  breathe  peace  and  trust  alone  — 
"  Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God." 

Like  some  fair  tree  on  mountain's  brow, 
"Which  braves  the  whirlwind  in  its  might, 

So,  firm,  he  stood  on  Zion's  Hill, 
A  noble  champion  for  the  right. 

Alike  he  trod  the  halls  of  State, 

And  lowly  cottage  of  the  poor ; 
While  every  place  his  presence  blessed, — 

Seemed  brighter  than  it  was  before. 

All  called  him  friend :  all  mourn  to-day, 

For  silent,  he  is  sleeping  now; 
His  still  hands  crossed  upon  his  breast, 

And  death's  pale  signet  on  his  brow. 


1  "  This  requiem,"  says  Mrs.  Bigelow,  "  was  composed  by  the  gifted  young  girl.  Miss  Clara  Portei, 
the  daughter  of  the  preacher,  who  a  few  months  later,  and  after  a  brief  illness  —  herself  entered 
her  '  glorious  home  on  high.'  When  her  father  had  nearly  completed  his  sermon  on  the  death  of 
his  friend,  she  entered  the  study  and  said,  '  Father,  I  wish  you  would  read  me  the  conclusion  of  your 
sermon.  I  have  been  composing  something  which  may  be  appropriate.'  When  he  had  finished 
what  he  had  prepared,  he  read  it  to  his  daughter,  and  she  sitting  on  a  low  seat  at  his  feet,  then 
repeated  the  words  of  the  foregoing  requiem,  which  he  copied  from  her  lips,  she  not  having  put  pen 
to  paper.  It  was  the  touching  utterance  of  her  gentle  soul,  inspired  by  the  delicate  and  fervent 
affection  she  felt  for  my  father,  and  her  intense  grief  for  his  loss.  She  was  entirely  overcome  at  his 
death,  and  unable  for  many  hours  to  leave  her  bed  after  it  was  announced  to  her." 


442  APPEXDIX  III. 

No  more  his  beaming  smile  we'll  see 
Which  sunshine  always  seemed  to  shed  ■ 

No  more  within  these  walls  he'll  bow, 
Now  draped  with  mourning  for  the  dead. 

Crossed  is  the  surging  flood  of  death, 
Gained  is  his  glorious  home  on  high; 

There,  free  from  every  earthly  ill, 
He  lives  to-day;  he  cannot  die. 

Then  trusting  in  the  God  he  loved, 

We'll  bow  beneath  the  chastising  rod, 
For  lo !  a  voice  celestial  speaks  — 
"  Be  still,  and  knotv  that  1  am  God." 


APPENDIX  III. 
PUBLIC  MEETING  AT  PFTTSFIELD. 

A  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  the  town  was  held  on  Sunday 
evening,  in  order  to  express  the  sentiments  which  filled  every 
heart.  The  spacious  church  of  the  First  Congregational  Society 
was  filled,  and  hundreds  were  unable  to  find  entrance.  Besides 
our  own  citizens,  several  distinguished  gentlemen  from  various 
parts  of  the  State  were  present,  and  took  part  in  the  meeting. 

Rev.  Dr.  Todd  presided,  and  speeches  were  made  by  Hon. 
James  D.  Colt,  Hon.  Oliver  Warner,  Secretary  of  the  Common- 
wealth, Rev.  Dr.  Marsh,  Secretary  of  the  American  Temper- 
ance Union,  Rev.  Dr.  Warren  of  Boston,  James  Francis,  Esq., 
Hon.  Henry  H.  Childs,  and  Hon.  Thomas  F.  Plunkett. 

We  cannot  report  fully  the  speeches,  but  give  a  few  promi- 
nent facts  stated. 

James  Francis,  Esq.,  senior  deacon  of  the  Baptist  Church, 
and  long  a  personal  friend  of  Governor  Briggs,  said,  — 

Mu.  Chairman:  —  In  consenting  to  occupy  a  few  moments  this  evening,  I  do 
not  presume  to  be  able  to  say  anything  that  might  not  be  better  said  by  any  indi- 


PUBLIC  MEETING  AT  PITTSFIELD.  443 

vidualwho  should  have  enjoyed  the  same  acquaintance  with  Governor  Briggs  as 
myself.  If  I  were  to  speak,  sir,  of  the  first  thing  that  arrested  my  attention  in 
the  early  part  of  my  acquaintance  with  him,  it  would  be  the  power  that  he  pos- 
sessed of  attracting  all  persons  who  knew  him  to  himself.  From  the  little  rag- 
ged boy,  with  a  single  suspender  over  his  shoulder  (I  refer  here  to  a  touching  in- 
cident at  his  funeral),  in  all  the  gradations  of  society  to  the  most  elevated  and 
refined,  all,  all  felt  this  strong  impression  that  here  was  a  man  to  be  trusted  and 
loved.  The  secret  of  this  universal  power  I  wished  to  discover.  I  perceived 
that  with  high  intellectual  endowments,  he  had  a  cheerful  face  and  a  noble 
heart;  but  I  had  seen  other  men  of  brilliant  talents,  of  generous  hearts,  and 
genial  countenances  who  had  gathered  around  them  from  certain  classes  admir- 
ing friends.  On  farther  acquaintance,  I  seemed  to  see  that  the  measure  of  his 
happiness  was  the  measure  of  the  happiness  of  all  around  him ;  that  wherever 
there  was  suffering,  whether  it  was  the  poor  drunkard,  approximating  in  his 
degradation  near  to  the  lower  order  of  animals,  or  in  the  higher  walks  of  life, 
he  instinctively  fled  to  their  relief;  and  so  powerful  was  this  passion  that  it 
seemed  to  me  at  times  as  though  he  could  not  do  otherwise  if  he  would,  thus 
illustrating  the  beautiful  sentiment  of  one  of  the  English  poets,  — 

'•'  The  heart  that  bleeds  for  others'  woes, 

Shall  feel  each  selfish  sorrow  less ; 
The  breast  that  happiness  bestows, 

Reflected  happiness  shall  bless." 

No  one  who  knew  him  could  doubt  his  love  for  the  Bible,  its  spirit  and  its 
author.  While  the  beautiful  symmetry  and  loveliness  of  his  Christian  character 
excited  the  admiration  of  all  who  knew  him,  yet  how  often  has  he,  with  a  gleam- 
ing eye  and  a  swelling  countenance,  said  to  me,  "  When  I  think  of  the  wonders 
of  redemption,  and  what  the  great  Master  has  done  for  the  redemption  of  man- 
kind, and  for  me,  it  is  then  I  distrust  the  genuineness  of  my  hope  that  I  am  a 
Christian." 

I  remember,  sir,  it  was  eaid  by  those  most  intimately  acquainted  with  the 
celebrated  Bobert  Hall,  of  England,  that  the  reason  why  some  of  the  finest  pro- 
ductions of  that  wonderful  mind  were  lost  to  the  world,  was  that,  erecting  be- 
fore his  own  mind  so  high  a  standard  of  excellence  in  composition,  and  con- 
trasting that  with  his  own  productions,  they  sank  so  far  below,  in  his  own  esti- 
mation of  that  inimitable  model,  that  he  utterly  refused  to  give  them  to  the 
world. 

When  Sir  Isaac  Newton  was  on  his  death-bed,  a  friend,  standing  by,  said  to 
him,  "  It  seems  to  me,  Mr.  Xewton,  it  must  have  been  a  source  of  exquisite  joy 
to  you  now  to  think  how  useful  has  been  your  life ;  hr>w  much  you  have  done  for 
the  advancement  of  science  and  religion,  and  for  the  highest  interests  of  your 
race  !  "  He  replied,  "  I  seem  to  myself  like  a  little  cliild  who  has  gathered  a  few 
pebbles  on  the  shore,  while  the  vast  ocean  lies  before  me  yet  unexplored." 

Mysterious  and  accidental  as  seemed  to  be  the  chain  of  events  that  led  to  his 


444  APPEND IX  III. 

death,  yet  it  has  been  observed  by  members  of  the  church  with  which  ho  was  con- 
nected, during  months  previous  to  his  death,  that  he  was  rapidly  advancing  in 
the  divine  life.  When  the  summons  came  so  suddenly,  he  seemed  like  "  a  shock 
of  corn  fully  ripe  unto  the  harvest."  And  although  he  has  left  us,  to  return  no 
more,  yet  the  influence  of  his  bright  example  will  live  until  earth's  last  inhabi- 
tant shall  have  passed  away,  and  then  onward  undiminished  forever. 

Hon.  Thomas  F.  Plunkett  said  that  although  always  opposing 
the  political  party  to  which  Governor  Briggs  belonged,  he  had 
always  had  the  highest  esteem  for  him  personally.  In  this  con- 
nection a  fact  mentioned  by  Mr.  Plunkett  has  much  interest :  he 
said, — 

It  gave  him  great  pleasure  to  add  his  testimony  upon  one  single  point  in  the 
character  of  Governor  Briggs,  in  addition  to  what  has  already  been  said  by 
others,  and  that  is  as  to  his  character  for  official  integrity.  In  the  early  part  of 
the  year  1857,  he  spent  several  weeks  in  Boston  analyzing  the  expenses  of  our 
State.  He  had  full  access  to  the  public  documents  in  the  Treasurer  and  Auditor's 
department,  and  he  employed  a  competent  accountant  to  assist  him.  They  ex- 
amined all  the  expenses  of  the  State  from  1832  to  1856  inclusive,  a  period  of 
twenty-five  years,  and  every  item  of  expense  for  that  long  period  was  classified 
under  its  appropriate  head,  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  when  and  how  the 
expenditures  of  the  State  had  been  so  largely  increased  in  the  five  last  years  pre- 
ceding 1856.  Governor  Briggs  was  in  the  executive  chair  from  1844  to  1850,  in- 
clusive (seven  years),  during  that  time  he  found  no  item  of  expense  that  could 
be  justly  criticised.  The  ordinary  expenses  of  the  State  were,  in  1844,  $413,000, 
and  at  the  end  of  seven  years  they  had  increased  to  $500,000,  making  about 
$20,000  annually,  just  about  in  proportion  to  the  increase  of  the  population.  In 
the  next  five  years,  the  ordinary  annual  expenses  had  reached  $1,400,000,  or 
three  times  as  much  as  they  were  under  the  administration  of  Governor  Briggs. 

Governor  Briggs  had  not  the  reputation  generally  of  having  great  memory  of 
statistics,  but  in  one  instance  he  much  surprised  him.  In  1857,  ilr.  Plunkett 
published  a  small  pamphlet  on  our  State  expenses,  giving  in  tabular  form  the 
expenses  of  each  year  for  twenty-five  years  preceding.  He  handed  Governor 
Briggs  one  of  these  pamphlets;  he  cast  his  eyes  over  the  column  of  the  total  ex- 
penses of  each  year,  and  when  he  came  to  1845,  he  said  at  once  that  was  wrong. 
It  should  be  about  so  much.  He  thought  he  was  mistaken,  but  examined  the 
item  over  and  found  that  Governor  Briggs  was  right,  and  that  there  had  been  a 
mistake  in  adding.  Considering  that  it  was  eleven  years  afterwards,  it  was  re- 
markable that  he  should  have  recollected  the  amount.  Whatever  mismanage- 
ment and  extravagance  we  may  have  had  since  he  left  the  gubernatorial  chair, 
we  are  certain  that  there  was  no  prodigality  or  plundering  under  the  administra- 
tion of  George  X.  Briggs. 

Hon.  Thomas  Colt,  on  introducing  the  resolutions,  said,  — 


AT  LAXESBORO'.  445 

I  will  not,  at  this  late  hour,  detain  this  audience  with  any  lengthy  preface  to 
the  resolutions  that  I  propose  to  offer.  Now,  sir,  that  there  is  nothing  left  to  us 
of  Governor  Briggs,  but  the  memory  and  the  grave  of  one  in  whose  heart  the 
love  of  us,  his  fellow-men,  was  only  weaker  than  his  love  of  God,  I  desire  to 
ol!er  for  the  consideration  of  this  large  assembly  the  following  resolutions,  that 
they  maj'  be  placed  upon  the  public  record,  in  token  that  this  community  appre- 
ciates the  character  of  such  a  patriot,  philanthropist,  and  Christian  as  was 
George  1ST.  Briggs.  There  can  be  no  stronger  proof  of  the  affectionate  esteem 
that  this  whole  people  had  for  him  than  the  occurrence  of  this  occasion  : 

Whereas,  It  has  pleased  the  Wise  Disposer  of  all  events  to  remove  suddenly 
and  mysteriously  by  death,  our  fellow-citizen,  George  N.  Briggs,  formerly  our 
representative  in  Congress,  then  the  Governor  of  this  Commonwealth,  and 
afterwards  the  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  and  who  during  his  life 
has  held  many  other  offices  of  public  trust, — 

Resolved,  That  this  community  entertain  a  high  estimation  of  the  character 
of  our  late  friend  and  fellow-citizen;  a  man  who,  in  social  and  private  life,  had 
the  power  to  draw  all  hearts  to  him;  who,  in  charities,  ever  had  a  heart  so 
large  and  a  hand  so  noble  that  the  poor  blessed  him  while  living,  and  many  will 
rise  up  and  call  him  blessed  now  that  he  is  gone ;  a  man  who  in  all  the  relations 
of  private  life,  as  a  friend  and  a  neighbor,  has  seldom  had  an  equal;  who,  in  all 
the  relations  of  public  office  and  public  life,  was  never  accused  of  wrong  or  un- 
worthy motives;  who  met  the  expectations  of  all,  fuliilled  the  most  arduous  and 
delicate  trusts  and  responsibilities  so  as  to  be  entitled  to  the  gratitude  of  all; 
who,  during  the  very  long  period  which  he  served  in  Congress,  and  as  the  Chief 
Magistrate  of  this  ancient  Commonwealth,  made  a  deep  impression  upon  his 
associates  of  his  honesty,  sincerity,  and  lofty  moral  principles ;  who,  as  an  advo- 
cate and  example  of  temperance,  made  a  deep  impression  on  his  generation; 
who,  as  a  Christian  gentleman,  was  a  bright  example  of  all  that  was  courteous 
in  intercourse,  all  that  was  humble  in  self-estimation,  and  all  that  was  pure  and 
lofty  in  hopes ;  the  man  in  whom  were  so  united  the  grave  and  the  cheerful, 
the  strong  and  the  lovely  parts  of  human  character,  —that  we  might  truly  say 

"the  elements 
So  mixed  in  him  that  nature  might  stand  up 
And  say  to  all  the  world,  this  was  a  man ! " 

Resolved,  That  we  are  grateful  to  that  Providence  which  has  so  long  spared 
us  a  fellow-citizen  so  much  beloved,  so  widely  known,  so  long  and  so  exten- 
sively useful,  so  cheerful  in  life  and  so  happy  and  blessed  in  death,  and  that 
his  memory  will  forever  remain  precious  to  this  whole  community. 

AT  LANESBORO'. 

A  public  meeting  was  held  in  Lanesboro'  Sunday  evening, 
September  15,  with  reference  to  the  death  of  Governor  Briggs, 

38 


446  APPENDIX  III. 

long  a  resident  in  the  town.  Various  gentlemen  have  interest- 
ing reminiscences  of  his  life,  and  all  bore  emphatic  testimony  to 
rhe  excellence  of  his  character.  Afterwards  the  meeting,  by 
vote,  adopted  the  following  preamble  and  resolutions  :  — 

Whereas,  It  having  pleased  God,  in  His  inscrutable  providence,  to  visit  the 
community  with  a  sudden  and  terrible  stroke  in  the  death  of  the  Hon.  George 
X.  Briggs,  it  seems  fit  that  the  citizens  of  the  town  in  which  he  studied  his  pro- 
fession and  began  his  public  career,  should  give  some  united  expression  to  their 
sense  of  his  worth ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That,  having  known  George  X.  Briggs  from  early  life,  we  long  ago 
learned  to  esteem  and  love  him  as  a  man,  a  neighbor,  and  a  friend.  And  as  the 
young  lawyer  of  Lanesboro'  went  on  and  up  till  he  had  for  many  years  held  a 
seat  in  Congress,  we  still  found  him,  and  have,  since  he  filled  the  highest  offices 
in  the  Commonwealth,  ever  found  him  affable,  genial,  warm-hearted,  and  true. 

Resolved,  That  from  the  time  he  entered  upon  public  life  we  observed  his 
course  with  peculiar  interest,  and  believe  that  he  passed  through  the  trying 
ordeal  of  politics  unscathed;  that  he  never  sold  his  vote,  or  sought  popularity  by 
base  or  dishonorable  means ;  and  that,  whether  in  the  halls  of  national  legisla- 
tion, in  the  executive  chair  of  the  State,  or  upon  the  judicial  bench,  he  main- 
tained a  noble  integrity. 

Resolved,  That  we  regard  him  as  having  been  a  true  philanthropist  and  a 
sincere  Christian.  The  poor  found  in  him  a  sympathizing  and  efficient  helper, 
the  cause  of  temperance  an  able  and  consistent  advocate,  and  all  who  love  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  one  ready  to  greet  and  co-operate  with  them  in  paternal  love. 

Resolved,  That  while  his  family,  his  friends,  the  county  in  which  he  resided, 
the  State,  and  the  nation  have  suffered  a  great  loss  in  his  death,  and  that  at  a 
time  when  they  would  seem  least  able  to  bear  it,  we  have  occasion  to  be  grateful 
for  that  precious  legacy  which  he  has  left  in  his  unsullied  name  and  bright 
example.  And  as  we  tender  our  profound  sympathy  to  his  bereaved  family, 
whom  many  of  us  count  among  our  personal  friends,  we  rejoice  that  they  have 
solid  ground  of  consolation  in  evidence  that  the  high  excellences  which  marked 
his  life  were  the  fruit  of  religious  principle,  early  implanted,  but  developing  new 
power  and  shining  with  added  grace  as  the  evening  of  life  drew  on,  till  it 
became  serenity,  perfect  resignation,  and  triumphant  faith  upon  the  bed  of 
death : — 

"  Weep  not  for  him  the  sainted  one, 

He  treads  a  happier  shore ; 
His  own  and  all  his  country's  woes 
Can  touch  him  now  no  more." 

Geo.  T.  Dole, 
Justus  Tower, 
J.  V.  Ambler, 

Committee. 


ACTIOX  OF  THE  BERKSHIRE  BAR.  447 

ACTION  OF   THE   BERKSHIRE  BAR. 

At  a  meeting  of  members  of  the  Berkshire  Bar,  held  at  Lenox, 
September,  term,  e861,  lion.  Increase  Simmer  was  chosen  chair- 
man, and  Henry  W.  Taft.  secretary. 

The  chair  communicated  to  the  Bar  the  intelligence  of  the 
•recent  decease  of  Hon.  George  N.  Briggs,  'when,  on  motion  of 
Hon.  J.  E.  Field,  Messrs.  H.  W.  Bishop,  Increase  Sumner,  and 
Geo.  J.  Tucker  were  appointed  a  committee,  who  subsequently 
reported  the  following  resolutions,  which  were  adopted  by  the 
Bar :  — 

Resolved,  That  in  the  death  of  George  Xixon  Briggs,  we  deplore  most  deeply 
the  loss  of  one  who,  throughout  his  professional  career  was  the  ornament  and 
the  beloved  of  this  Bar;  who,  in  the  outset  of  life,  by  his  sound  and  vigorous 
understanding,  moral  excellence,  and  incorruptible  honesty,  won  the  esteem 
and  confidence  of  an  appreciative  public,  and  received  from  it  the  honorable 
recognitions  due  to  eminent  virtues  and  endowments. 

Resolved,  That  there  is  due  from  the  whole  country,  and  particularly  from  his 
own  State,  a  debt  of  lasting  gratitude  for  the  many  useful  and  able  public  services 
discharged  and  fulfilled  by  him,  with  a  Christian's  loyalty  and  a  patriot's 
devotion. 

Resolved,  That,  as  a  member  of  Congress,  he  studiously  consulted  the  interests 
and  fully  met  the  just  expectations  of  those  whom  he  represented;  was  capable, 
faithful,  and  true  at  all  times  to  his  constituency  and  his  country.  As  a  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Commonwealth,  he  was  judicious,  firm,  and  exempt  from  the  influ- 
ences of  political  animosities  and  personal  considerations;  and,  as  a  judge,  just, 
intelligent,  and  impartial. 

Resolved,  That  in  the  various  offices  with  which  he  was  charged  by  a  confiding 
people,  he  sought  earnestly  for  what  was  good  and  right,  and  was  more  solicitous 
to  deserve,  than  to  receive,  the  approbation  and  honor  of  his  fellow-citizens. 

Resolved,  That  the  rare  excellences  of  our  departed  friend  were  particularly 
conspicuous  in  his  social  and  domestic  relations.  He  was  studious  of  the  hap- 
piness of  all  about  him ;  he  loved  his  friends ;  he  had  no  enemies  to  hate :  although 
sentiments  and  opinions  which  he  regarded  as  erroneous  and  pernicious  received 
his  emphatic  censure,  they  never  produced  feelings  of  personal  hostility  to  him 
who  might  entertain  them.  His  genial  nature;  his  ardent  and  confiding  attach- 
ment ;  his  chaste  and  delicate  pleasantry ;  his  apt  and  charming  narration  of  anec- 
dote, never  -without  point,  and  often  wonderfully  illustrative;  his  social  powers, 
admitting  unconstrained  familiarity,  but  repressing  offensive  readiness  by  manly 
dignity;  his  active  kindness,  quiet  almsgiving,  and  his  hearty  co-operations  with 
good  men  in  all  the  measures  wisely  devised  for  the  good  of  the  race,  are  all  well 
known  to  those  with  whom  he  has  been  associated  in  public  and  private  life. 


443  APPEXDIX  III. 

Resolved,  That  we  will  cherish  the  memory  of  Governor  Briggs  as  a  faithful 
friend  and  exemplary  Christian,  a  public  benefactor,  and  a  model  of  moral  excel- 
lence and  social  and  domestic  virtue. 

At  the  request  of  the  Bar,  these  resolutions  were  presented  by 
the  committee  to  the  Supreme  Judicial  Court,  then  in  session, 
with  the  request  that  they  might  be  entered  in  the  records  of  the 
court.  The  presentation  to  the  court  was  accompanied  by  ap- 
propriate remarks  from  Messrs.  Bishop  and  Sumner.  Mr.  Sum- 
ner said,  — 

May  it  please  your  Honors,  —  The  resolutions  just  read,  prepared  by  Brother 
Bishop,  so  fully  embrace  what  is  fitting  on  this  occasion,  that  I  dare  not  presume, 
I  can  add  to  them  acceptable  remarks. 

When  tidings  of  the  sad  occurrence  to  Governor  Briggs  came,  as  it  did,  sud- 
denly upon  me,  I  felt  that  I  should  faint  and  fall  prostrate  upon  the  earth.  But 
I  am  calmer  now.  The  agony  is  over,  and  the  pure  and  gentle  spirit  of  George 
Nixon  Briggs,  quit  of  its  tegument  of  flesh,  is  in  heaven. 

There  are  instances,  when  men  eminent  for  great  gifts  and  powers  and  public 
services  are  taken  away,  the  event  so  bewilders  and  overwhelms  that  we  cannot 
at  once  composedly  dwell  upon  their  history  or  speak  of  their  lives  and  charac- 
ter. Xot  so  of  Governor  Briggs.  The  entire  scenery  of  his  life,  so  rare  and 
picturesque  and  lovely,  opens  upon  us  instantly  as  his  presence  departs,  and  ',ve 
can  at  once  look  upon  it  with  admiration  and  pleasure,  and  speak  of  it,  not  oidy 
with  composure,  but  delight.  Just  as  when  we  stand  on  some  commanding  hill- 
top, at  the  close  of  a  serene  summer's  day,  and  see  the  sun  retiring  in  glory, 
leaving  a  vast  space  of  the  horizon  aglow  with  tokens  of  his  blessing  upon  the 
day,  and  with  promises  of  a  goodly  morrow,  the  quiet  beauty  and  calmness  of 
the  scene  prompts  alike  to  contemplative  humor  or  to  discourse ;  so  now,  at  the 
closing  of  the  good  man's  day,  we  look  calmly  upon  his  life-scenes,  and  speak  of 
his  deeds. 

Of  humble  but  respectable  origin,  dependent  under  Providence  upon  his  own 
efforts,  he  acquired  a  legal  education  and  admission  to  this  Bar.  He  found  the 
ground  occupied  by  distinguished  members  of  the  legal  profession,  —  such  men 
as  Dwight  and  Jarvis  and  Mills  and  Howe,  in  the  freshness  and  full  vigor  of  their 
powers,  were  his  competitors,  —  but  such  were  his  talents  that  he  at  once  took 
rank  with  them  as  their  peer,  and  succeeded  in  sharing  with  them  successfully 
the  patronage  and  business  afforded  in  the  courts.  His  fellow-citizens  saw  and 
appreciated  his  many  and  excellent  qualities ;  they  discovered  in  the  analysis  of 
his  mind  and  character  a  strength  of  understanding,  a  strict  and  intelligent 
regard  to  duty,  such  as  springs  from  sincerity,  integrity,  and  faithfulness,  and  a 
laudable  desire  to  promote  the  best  interests  and  welfare  of  all.  Xo  marvel  was 
it,  therefore,  that  he  should  have  been  selected  and  retained  for  twelve  long 
years  as  a  representative  from  this  noble  section  of  the  State  in  the  national 


ACTION  OF  THE  BERKSHIRE  BAR.  449 

legislature,  during  all  which  time  those  who  from  the  restraints  of  political  asso- 
ciations withheld  from  him  their  suffrages,  were  not  less  earnest  and  ready  than 
those  who  bestowed  them,  in  expressing  their  satisfaction,  and  pride  even,  that 
in  the  halls  of  Congress  there  stood,  as  the  representative  from  this  district,  one 
so  blameless  in  his  life,  so  truly  honest  in  all  his  aims  and  efforts,  and  so  capable 
for  the  discharge  of  his  trusts. 

He  was  a  native  of  this  county,  and  he  loved  with  all  the  ardor  and  affection 
of  a  son  this,  our  ancient  Commonwealth.  He  studied  its  interests  and  welfare, 
and  well  understood  each,  as  well  the  grandest  and  noblest  objects  it  presented, 
as  those  humble  and  minute.  The  mariner,  whether  he  furled  the  sails  of  his 
bark  at  our  wharves,  or  afar  off  upon  the  deep  spread  them  to  the  breeze;  the 
success  of  the  humble  mechanic  or  laborer,  or  of  the  opulent  merchant  upon 
'change ;  the  great  enterprises  of  the  manufacturer,  or  the  toils  of  the  poor  fac- 
tory boy;  the  prosperous  agriculturist  with  his  rich  acres  and  flocks,  or  the 
humble  ploughman  upon  the  hill-side;  the  noble  designs  of  charity;  the  associa- 
tions and  efforts  promotive  of  the  stability  or  advancement  of  morals  and  Chris- 
tianity;  all  institutions  of  learning  from  least  to  greatest,  and  all  engaged  in  the 
cause  of  education,  from  the  young  cottage  child,  with  primer  in  hand,  seated 
upon  the  lowest  form  in  the  school-room,  to  the  distinguished  professors  and 
governors  of  our  colleges,  —  in  a  word,  all  which  could  tend  to  make  our  beloved 
Commonwealth  truly  great  and  prosperous,  and  its  people  virtuous  and  happy, 
received  his  earnest  attention  and  solicitude.  So  manifest  was  all  this  to  his 
fellow-citizens,  and  so  correctly  did  they  judge  of  his  capacities,  that  most  natu- 
ral was  it,  they  should  instinctively,  as  it  were,  elevate  him  to  the  highest 
place  in  their  gift  —  the  Executive  chair  — which  had  been  filled  by  such  men  — 
his  predecessors  — as  Hancock  and  Samuel  Adams,  Sullivan  and  Strong,  long 
■  since  gone,  and  by  Levi  Lincoln  and  Edward  Everett,  still  living,  and  whom  may 
kind  Heaven  long  preserve.  It  is  comment  enough  to  add,  that  the  expressions 
of  confidence  in  his  ability  and  merits  as  a  Chief  Magistrate  were  repeated,  and 
deservedly  so,  at  six  successive  elections  after  be  was  first  chosen. 

He  was  a  just  man,  in  the  highest  and  best  sense  of  the  term;  he  possessed 
correct  perceptions  of  the  difference  betwixt  right  and  wrong,  firmness  and  ex- 
cellent judgment,  and  legal  attainments  adequate  for  discharging  the  duties  of  a 
judge.  Hence,  after  his  retirement  from  the  office  of  Governor,  he  was  called  to 
the  bench,  and  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  he  left  an  honorable  record  of  his 
judicial  labors. 

A  survey  of  the  life  and  character  of  this  eminent  and  excellent  man,  how  like 
is  it  to  the  viewing  of  some  vast  landscape  in  which  no  single  deformity  or  ruin 
exists,  but  filled  with  objects  that,  whether  seen  singly  or  in  groups,  are  alike 
charming  and  captivating;  no  broken  surfaces  nor  rugged  features,  no  dreary 
wastes  nor  darkened  caverns,  but  everywhere,  far  and  extended  as  the  eye  can 
reach,  all  verdant  and  beautiful,  illumined  with  baliny  sunshine  enamelled  with 
flowers,  and  fragrant  with  the  sweet  breath  of  heaven.  It  would  be  pleasant  to 
linger  yet  awhile  upon  the  scene,  and  depict  the  lovely  images  everywhere  dis- 
cernible, but  the  hour  allotted  us  requires  me  to  be  brief.  Over  all  the  landscape 
38* 


150  APPENDIX  III. 

there  is  only  one  place  of  which  we  may  not  speak,  except  with  subdued  voice 
and  few  words, — the  place  dearest  to  him  of  all,  and  which  his  presence  so 
blessed,  —  compared  with  which  in  his  affection  neither  honorable  position  in  the 
halls  of  legislation,  nor  elevation  in  the  judicial  forum  nor  chair  of  state,  were 
even  of  remote  account,  —  his  own  loved  home.  We  may  not  speak  of  it  now,  fur 
his  departure  is  too  recent  and  this  occasion  is  too  intense.  There  also  rests 
what  of  him  was  mortal,  and  thither  upon  the  morrow  we  may  repair,  with 
silent  tread  and  bowed  and  uncovered  heads,  and  with  rites  fitting  Christian 
sepulture,  take  up  the  precious  remains  and  lay  them  in  their  resting-place, 
where  angels  will  watch  their  repose  until  the  sounding  of  the  last  trumpet  shall 
thrill  him  with  its  warning. 

And  thus  upon  earth  we  part  with  him;  in  the  solemn,  impressive,  and  appro- 
priate lauguage  in  the  burial  service  of  the  Church  of  England,  "  Looking  for  the 
general  resurrection  in  the  last  day,  and  the  life  of  the  world  to  come,  through 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  at  whose  second  coming  in  glorious  majesty  to  judge  the 
world,  the  earth  and  the  sea  shall  give  up  their  dead." 

His  Honor,  Chief  Justice  Bigelow,  replied  as  follows  :  — 

Gentlemen  of  the  Bar,  —  The  Court  respond  most  cordially  to  the  sentiments 
contained  in  the  resolutions  of  the  Bar  which  have  just  been  read,  and  unite  with 
a  sorrowful  satisfaction  in  paying  a  tribute  to  the  virtues,  both  public  and  pri- 
vate, of  your  late  beloved  associate.  The  death  of  a  member  of  a  Bar,  whom  we 
have  been  accustomed  to  regard  as  one  of  the  circle  with  whom  we  are  brought 
closely  in  contact  in  the  discharge  of  our  duties,  is  always  an  event  which  arrests 
our  attention  and  "gives  us  pause,"  even  amid  the  pressure  of  our  constant 
labors.  But  that  impression  is  deepened  and  our  sensibilities  are  quickened,  * 
when,  as  in  this  case,  we  are  called  on  to  deplore  the  death  not  only  of  a  profes- 
sional associate  and  brother,  but  also  of  one  who  sustained  towards  each  of  us 
the  closer  and  nearer  relation  which  results  from  strong  personal  friendship  and 
regard. 

The  death  of  Governor  Briggs  will  be  widely  and  deeply  felt  throughout  the 
Commonwealth.  During  the  many  years  which  it  was  his  fortune  to  pass  in 
public  life,  he  became  more  generally  known  to  the  people  of  the  State  than  most 
persons  who  are  called  to  fill  high  official  stations.  His  great  affability  and  kind- 
ness of  manner,  and  the  republican  simplicity  which  characterized  his  inter- 
course with  others,  allowed  every  one  to  approach  him  with  perfect  freedom, 
and  he  won  the  hearts  of  all  by  the  genial  traits  which  distinguished  him.  He 
was  indeed  a  remarkable  example  of  the  fostering  influence  of  our  institutions 
upon  men  who  enter  into  life  without  adventitious  aid  or  early  opportunities  to 
acquire  knowledge.  Employed  in  agricultural  and  mechanical  pursuits  until  he 
had  attained  his  majority,  he  never  had  opportunities  to  enjoy  the  benefits  of 
early  and  caref.-.l  training  and  study.  With  a  scanty  education,  such  as  could  be 
acquired  in  our  common  public  schools  at  the  period  when  he  entered  life,  more 
than  forty  years  ago,  he  not  only  attained  distinction  as  a  member  of  this  Bar,  but 


ACTION  OF  THE  BERKSHIRE  BAR.  451 

he  filled  the  many  high  public  stations  to  which  he  was  called  by  the  confident 
regard  of  the  people  with  signal  success  and  honor.  He  was  a  faithful,  consist- 
ent, patriotic  representative  in  the  national  councils,  who  never  forgot  the 
interests  of  his  constituents,  or  was  false  to  his  duty  to  his  country.  He  was  an 
upright  and  impartial  judge,  who  administered  justice  without  fear  or  favor.  He 
was  a  dignified,  independent,  firm,  and  enlightened  Chief  Magistrate,  who  shed 
lustre  on  our  beloved  Commonwealth  by  his  long  and  faithful  services.  In  all 
the  stations  whic'i  he  filled,  exposed  as  he  was  to  the  shafts  of  political  rancor, 
his  integrity  was  never  impeached  or  called  in  question.  Detraction,  it  is  said, 
finds  its  most  "  acceptable  quarry  in  the  failings  of  the  good  man;  "  but  it  may 
be  said  with  truth  that  it  never  ventured  to  assail  him. 

And  this  leads  us  to  notice  what,  on  this  occasion,  we  most  delight  to  recall  — 
his  personal  character  and  virtues,  which  endeared  him  to  us  as  a  man.  Where 
can  we  find  in  the  circle  of  our  friends  and  acquaintances  one  who  had  a  warmer 
or  purer  heart?  Where  shall  we  seek  for  a  more  sincere  and  disinterested 
.  friend,  a  wiser  counsellor  ?  Who  can  point  to  a  more  consistent  and  devoted 
Christian  ? 

His  death  was  sudden,  and  was  accompanied  by  severe  physical  distress ;  but 
it  did  not  find  him  unprepared  or  unwilling  to  meet  the  great  and  final  change. 
Although  we  feel  keenly  the  shock,  we  cannot  doubt  that  to  him,  who  relied  so 
confidently  on  the  promises  of  the  Gospel,  and  who  was  so  well  entitled  to 
inherit  the  blessings  in  store  for  the  pure  in  heart,  his  death  was  only  a  transla- 
tion to  the  higher  and  happier  mansions  above. 

In  compliance  with  the  request  of  the  Bar,  the  resolutions  which  have  been 
offered  will  be  placed  on  record. 


jHnts, 


PUBLISHED      BY 


GOULD    AND    LINCOLN, 


59  Washington  Street,  Boston, 


GOD  REVEALED  IX  NATURE  AND  IN  CHRIST;  including  a 
Refutation  of  the  Development  Theory  contained  in  the  "  Vestiges  of  the  Xat« 
ural  History  of  Creation."  By  Itev.  James  B.  Walker,  author  of  "  The 
Philosophy  of  the  Plan  of  Salvation."    l2mo,  cloth,  1.50. 

THE  SUFFERING  SAVIOUR ;  or,  Meditations  on  the  Last  Days  of 
Christ.  By  Feed.  W.  Keummacher,  D.D.,  author  of  "  Elijah  the  Tishbite." 
12rno,  cloth,  1.75  ;  cloth,  gilt,  2.75  ;  half  calf,  3.50. 

"  The  narrative  is  given  with  thrilling  vividness  and  pathos  and  beauty.  Marking,  as  we  pro- 
ieedcd,  several  passages  for  quotation,  we  found  them,  in  the  end,  so  numerous  that  we  must  refer 
the  reader  to  the  work  itself."  —  J\'ews  of  the  Churches  (Scottish). 

m 
THE    TESTIMONY  OF  CHRIST  TO  CHRISTIANITY.     By  Peter 
Bayne,  M.  A.,  author  of  "  Christian  Life,"  etc.     lOmo,  cloth,  00  cts. 
03"  A  work  of  great  interest  and  power. 

THE  BENEFIT  OF  CHRIST'S  DEATH;  or,  The  Glorious  Riches  of 
God's  Free  Grace,  which  every  True  Believer  receives  by  Jesus  Christ  and  Him 
Crucified.  Originally  written  in  Italian  by  Aonio  Paleario,  and  now  Reprinted 
from  an  Ancient  English  Translation.  With  an  Introduction  by  Rev.  John 
Ayer,  M.  A.    lGmo,  cloth,  75  cts. 

WREATH  AROUND  THE  CROSS;  or,  Scripture  Truths  Illustrated.  By 
the  Rev.  A.  Morton  Brown,  D.  D.  Recommendatory  Preface,  by  John 
Angell  James.    With  a  beautiful  Frontispiece.    lGmo,  cloth,  1.00. 

EXTENT  OF  THE  ATONEMENT  IN  ITS  RELATION  TO   GOD 
AND    THE    Z'NIVERSE.      By   Rev.   THOMAS   W.   Jenkyn,    D.  D.,  late 
President  of  Coward  College,  London.     12mo,  cloth,  1.50 

"  We  consider  this  volume  as  setting  the  long  and  fiercely  agitated  question,  as  to  the  extent  of 
the  Atonement,  completely  at  rest,  rostcrity  will  thank  the  author,  till  the  latest  ages,  for  his  illus- 
trious argument." —  A".  1'.  EvumjelUt. 

CHRIST  IN  HISTORY.  By  Robert  Turnbull,  D.  D.  A  New  and  En- 
larged Edition.     12mo,  cloth,  1.75. 

THE  SCHOOL  OF  CHRIST ;  or,  Christianity  Viewed  in  its  Leading 
Aspects.  Ry  the  Rev.  A.  R.  L.  Foote,  author  of  "  Incidents  in  the  Life  of  our 
Saviour,"  etc.    lGmo,  cloth,  75  cts. 

lo 


6muL)  unD  sCiiuoln's  |JublicatxDns. 


WAYLAXD'S  LETTERS  OX  THE  MIXISTRY  OF  TELE  GOS- 
FEL.    By  Francis  Waylasd,  D.D.     IGmo,  cloth,  90  cts. 

WAYLAXD'S  SALYATIOX  BY  CHRIST.  A  Series  of  Discourses  on 
some  of  the  most  Important  Doctrines  of  the  Gospel.  By  Francis  Way  land, 
D.  D.    12mo,  cloth,  1.50;  cloth,  gilt,  2.25. 

THE  LIFE  OF  TRUST ;  being  a  Narrative  of  the  Dealings  of  God  -with 
the  Rev.  George  Miller.  Edited  and  condensed  by  Rev.  H.  Lincoln 
Waylasd.     With  an  Introduction  by  Francis  Wayland,  D.D.    Cloth,  1.75. 

This  work  has  a  peculiar  charm,  as  an  unadorned  story  of  the  experience  of  a  Christian  man 
•who  believed  in  the  mighty  power  of  prayer,  who  gave  a  literal  interpretation  to  the  precept,  "  Take 
no  thought  for  the  morrow,"  and  lived  by  daily  faith  in  God's  providence  and  grace. 

THE  YEAR  OF  GRACE  :  a  History  of  the  Great  Revival  in  Ireland  in 
1859.  By  Rev.  William  Gibson,  Professor  of  Christian  Ethics  in  the  Pres- 
byterian College,  Belfast.    12mo,  cloth.  1.75. 

A  remarkable  book  on  a  remarkable  subject.  Next  to  a  visit  to  the  scenes  of  the  Revival,  noth- 
ing can  give  so  adequate  an  idea  of  the  wonderful  work  as  the  thrilling  narrative  of  Prof.  Gibson. 

MEMORIALS  OF  EARLY  CHRISTIAXITY ;  Presenting,  in  a  graphic, 
compact,  and  popular  form,  Memorable  Events  of  Early  Ecclesiastical  History, 
etc.  By  Rev.  J.  G.  Ml  all,  author  of  "  Footsteps  of  our  Forefathers."  With 
numerous  Illustrations.     12mo,  cloth,  1.50. 

FOOTSTEPS  OF  OUR  FOREFATHERS  ;  What  they  Suffered  and  what 
they  Sought.  Describing  Localities,  and  Portraying  Personages  and  Events, 
conspicuous  in  the  Struggles  for  Religious  Liberty.  By  Ja_>ies  G.  Miall.  Con- 
taining thirty-six  Illustrations.     12mo,  cloth,  1.50. 

MODERX  ATHEISM ;  Under  its  forms  of  Pantheism,  Materialism,  Secular- 
ism, Development,  and  Natural  Laws.    By  James  Buchanan,  D.  D.,  LL.  D. 
12mo,  cloth,  1.75. 
"  The  work  is  one  of  the  most  readable  and  solid  -which  we  have  ever  perused."  —  Hugh  Miller. 

3IORXIXG  HOURS  IX  FATMOS.  The  Opening  Vision  of  the  Apoca- 
lypse, and  Christ's  Epistle  to  the  Seven  Churches  of  Asia.  By  Rev.  A.  C. 
Thompson,  D.  D.,  author  of  "The  Better  Land,"'  "Gathered  Lilies,"  etc. 
With  beautiful  Frontispiece.     12mo,  cioth,  L50. 

FIRST  THIXGS;  or,  the  Development  of  Church  Life.  By  Baron  Stow, 
D.  D.     lGmo,  cloth,  90  cts. 

THE  GREAT  COXCERX ;  or,  Man's  Relation  to  God  and  a  Future  State. 
By  Xehemiah  Adams,  D.  D.     12mo,  cloth,  1.25. 

"  Pungent  and  affectionate,  reaching  the  intellect,  conscience,  and  feelings  ;  admirably  fitted  to 
Awaken,  guide ,  and  instruct.    Just  the  thing  for  distribution  in  our  congregations."  —V.  K  Observer. 

EVEXIXGS  WITH  THE  IJOCTRIXES.  By  Rev.  Nehemiah  Adams, 
D.  D.    Royal  12mo,  cloth,  1.75. 

rf RUTHS  FOR   THE   TIMES.     By  Nehemiah  Adams,  D.  D.,  Pastor  of 
Esaex-etreet  Church,  Boston.    12mo,  paper  covers,  15  and  30  cts. 

15 


6ou(u  untr  Qxiitolris  Igttbiixaibtts; 


CRUDEN9  S  CONDENSED  CONCORDANCE.  A  Complete  Concordance 
to  the  Holy  Scriptures.  By  Alexander  Cruden.  Revised  and  re-edited  by 
the  Rev.  David  King,  LL.  JD.    Octavo,  cloth  arabesque,  1.75  ,  sheep,  2.00. 

The  condensation  of  the  quotations  of  Scripture,  arranged  under  the  most  obvious  heads,  while 
it  diminishes  the  bulk  of  the  work,  greatly  faciiita'es  the  finding  of  any  r-  quired  passage. 
"  We  have  in  this  edition  ot  Cruden  the  best  made  better."  —  Puritan  Recorder. 

EADIE'S  ANALYTICAL  CONCORDANCE  OF  THE  HOLY 
SCRIPTURES  ;    or,  the  Bible  presented    under    Distinct   and    Classified 

Heads  or  Topics.  By  John  Eadie,  D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  Author  of  "  Biblical  Cyclo- 
paedia," "  Ecclesiastical  Cyclopaedia,"  "  Dictionary  of  the  Bible,"  etc.  One  vol- 
ume, octavo, 840 pp.,  cloth,  4.00  ;  sheep,  5.00  ;  cloth,  gilt,  5.50  ;  half  calf,  6.50. 

The  object  of  this  Concordance  is  to  present  the  Scriptures  entire,  under  certain  classified 
and  exhaustive  heads.  It  differs  from  an  ordinary  Concordance,  in  that  its  arrangement  depends 
not  on  words,  but  on  subjects,  and  the  verses  are  printed  in  full. 

KITTO'S  POPULAR  CYCLOPEDIA  OF  BIBLICAL  LITERA- 
TURE. Condensed  from  the  larger  work.  By  the  Author,  John  Kitto, 
D.  D.  Assisted  by  James  Taylor,  D.  D.,  of  Glasgow.  With  over  live  hun- 
dred Illustrations.  One  volume,  octavo,  812  pp.,  cloth,  4.00  ;  sheep,  5.00  ;  half 
calf,  7.00. 

A  Dictionary  of  the  Bible.  Serving  also  as  a  Commentary,  embodying  the  products  of 
the  best  and  most  recent  researches  in  biblical  literature  in  which  the  scholars  of  Europe  and 
America  have  been  engaged. 


■o^-o^ 


KITTO'S  HISTORY  OF  PALESTINE,  from  the  Patriarchal  Age  to  the 
Present  Time;  with  Chapters  on  the  Geography  and  Natural  History  of  the 
Country,  the  Customs  and  Institutions  of  the  Hebrews.  By  John  Kitto, 
D.  D.     With  upwards  of  two  hundred  Illustrations.     12mo,  cloth,  1.75. 

93-  A  work  admirably  adapted  to  the  Family,  the  Sabbath  School,  and  the  week-day  School  Li- 
brary 

WESTCOTT'S  INTRODUCTION  TO   THE  STUDY  OF  THE  GOS- 
PELS.    With  Historical  and  Explanatory  Notes.    By  Brooke  Foss 
Westcott,  JI.  A.,  late  Fellow  of  Trinity  College,  Cambridge.    With  an  Intro- 
duction by  Prof.  II.  B.  HACKETT,  D.  D.     Royal  12mo,  cloth,  2.00. 
A  masterly  work  by  a  master  mind. 


ELLICOTT'S    LIFE     OF    CHRIST    HISTORICALLY     CONSID- 
ERED.     The  Hulsean  Lectu.es  for  1850,  with  Notes  Critical,  Historical,  and 
Explanatory.    By  C.  J.  Ellicott,  B.  D      Royal  12mo,  cloth,  1.75. 
Vf3~  Admirable  in  spirit,  and  profound  in  argument. 

JtAWLINSON'S  HISTORICAL  EVIDENCES  OF  THE  TRUTH 
OF  THE  SCRIPTURE  RECORDS,  STATED  ANEW,  with  Special 
reference  to  the  Doubts  and  Discoveries  of  Modern  Times.  In  Eight  Lectures, 
delivered  in  the  Oxford  University  pulpit,  at  the  Bampton  Lecture  for  1S59.  By 
Geo.  Rawlixson,  31.  A.,  Editor  of  the  Histories  of  Herodotus.  With  the  Co- 
pious Notes  translated  for  the  American  edition  by  an  accomplished  scholar. 
12mo,  cloth,  1.75. 

"  The  consummate  learning,  judgment,  and  general  ability,  displayed  by  Mr.  Rawlinson  in  bin 
edition  of  Herodotus,  are  exhibited  in  this  work  also."—  Xorth-American, 

18 


(Snuttr  anbr  ^toxnlns  1|ubiua&^. 


LIFE,  TIMES,  AXD  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  .TAMES  MAN- 
XJXG,  and  the  Early  History  of  Brown  University.  By  ReubeS 
Aldridge  Guild.  With  Likenesses  of  President  Manning  and  Nicholas 
Brown,  Views  of  Brown  University,  The  First  Baptist  Church,  Providence,  ete, 
Royal  12mo,  cloth,  3.00. 

A  most  important  and  interesting  historical  work. 

MEMOIR  OF  GEORGE  X.  BRIGGS,  LL.  I).,  late  Governor  of  Massa- 
chusetts.   By  W.  C.  Richards.      With  Illustrations.    Royal  12mo.  2.50 

THE  LIFE  OF  JOHN  MTLTOX,  narrated  in  connection  with  the  Polit- 
ical, Ecclesiastical,  and  Literary  History  ok  his  Time.  By  David 
Masson,  M.  A.,  Professor  of  English  Literature,  University  College,  London. 
Vol.  I.,  embracing  the  period  from  1G0S  to  1639.  With  Portraits  and  specimens 
of  his  handwriting  at  different  periods.    Royal  octavo,  cloth,  3.50, 

TIFF  AND    CORRESPONDENCE    OF  REV.  DANIEL    WILSON, 

D.  D.,  late  Bishop  of  Calcutta.    By  Rev.  Josl\h  Bateman,  M.  A.,  Rector 
of  Xorth  Cray,  Kent.    With  Portraits,  Map,  and  numerous  Illustrations.    One 
volume  royal  octavo,  cloth,  3.50. 
j@£f-  An  interesting  life  of  a  great  and  good  man. 

THE  FIFE  AXD  TIMES  OF  JOHX  HESS;  or,  The  Bohemian  Refor- 
mation of  the  Fifteenth  Century.  By  Rev.  E.  H.  Gillett.  Two  vols,  royal 
octavo,  7.00. 

"The  author,"  gays  the  New  York  Observer,  "has  achieved  a  great  work,  performed  a  valuable 
service  for  Protestantism  and  the  world,  made  a  name  for  himself  among  religious  historians,  and 
produced  a  book  that  will  hold  a  prominent  place  in  the  esteem  of  every  religious  scholar." 

The  New  York  Evangelist  speaks  of  it  as  "  one  of  the  most  valuable  contributions  to  ecclesiasti- 
cal history  yet  made  in  this  country." 

MEMOIR  OF  THE  CHRISTIAX  LABORS,  Pastoral  and  Philan- 
thropic, of  THOMAS  CHALMERS,  ID.  D.  L.L.  L>.    By  FRANCIS  Wat- 
land.    16mo,  cloth,  1.00. 
The  moral  and  intellectual  greatness  of  Chalmers  is,  we  might  say,  overwhelming  to  the  mind  of 

the  ordinary  reader.    Dr.  Wayland  draws  the  portraiture  with  a  master  hand.  —  Method.  Quart.  Rev. 

LIFE  OF  JAMES  MONTGOMERY.  By  Mrs.  H.  C.  Knight,  author  of 
"Lady  Huntington  and  her  Friends,"  etc.  Likeness,  and  elegant  Frustrated 
Title-Page  on  steel.     12mo,  cloth,  1.50. 

DIARY  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  AMOS  LAWRENCE.  With 
a  brief  account  of  some  Incidents  in  his  Life.  Edited  by  his  son,  Wm.  R.  Law- 
rence, M.  D.  With  elegant  Portraits  of  Amos  and  Abbott  Lawrence,  an  En- 
graving of  their  Birthplace,  an  Autograph  page  of  Handwriting,  and  a  copious 
Index.    <  ne  large  octavo  volume,  cloth,  2.50. 

The  Same  Work.    Royal  12mo,  cloth,  1.75. 

DR.  GRANT  AND  THE  MOT  NTAIN NESTORIANS.  By  Rev.  Thom- 
as LAURIE,  his  surviving  associate  in  that  Mission.  With  a  Likeness.  Map  of 
the  Country,  and  numerous  Illustrations.  Third  edition  Revised  and  improved. 
12mo,  cloth,  1.75.      fty  A  most  valuable  memoir  of  a  remarkable  man. 

8 

XL 


I 


«■ 


mmt